Q&A for How to Keep a Piercing from Rejecting

A piercing is affected by movement much more than you would think, so it's important to just leave it alone. Avoid touching or moving the piercing.

Rinse your piercing in the shower and use a sterile saline wound wash once or twice a day. Another important part of taking care of any piercing is that you don't touch or move it unnecessarily. You should also remember to treat your body well. Your body is doing the work when it comes to the healing process, and if you're treating your body poorly, there's a chance that your healing could be compromised.

Wait for it to completely heal! Then go to your piercer and get it done again. Wear no tight clothing over it, avoid touching it, and wash it regularly. This should help, but there's never a 100% chance it won't reject.

Go to your piercer. The risk of a dermal rejecting is much higher than any other piercing, although it is unlikely that the piercing is being rejected if you have had it for a year. The greater likelihood is that the piercing was bumped or moved in some way, a small tear occurred and then got infected. To know for sure whether this is the case, put a few drops of peroxide on the piercing. If the peroxide bubbles, the piercing is infected; if it does not, then you have a different problem. Wash peroxide off after the test, as it can cause the skin around the piercing to dry and crack.

A new piercing might make you more tired because your body is trying to heal, but shouldn't cause breathing issues. If you are experiencing fatigue and breathing problems, seek advice from a doctor or trained medical professional.

The gap between the top and bottom of the ring will start getting smaller and the skin could go super red all around the piercing. You would notice this within a day or two.

You can let your ear heal and re-piece later on. You may want to investigate as you whether you have an allergy to avoid continual rejection.

That could be a sign that your piercing is being rejected. Since eyebrows are a type of dermal piercing, it's an eventuality that you should be careful of.

You should change the bar into a plastic one if completely necessary. Otherwise, just keep cleaning it; it is quite normal for your piercing to be red just after getting it done.

The area might get red and have bumps -- called keloids -- around it. Remove the piercing and spray the area with a mix of water and sea salt.

Best bet is to ask your piercer's opinion. It could be bruised. If you got it done with a gun, it could've also shattered cartilage.

Monitor the symptoms for several days or a week. Visit the studio you received the piercing at if you notice worsening symptoms. Seek medical help if you notice signs of infection.

You may be cleaning it too much. Lay off the sea salt, that's probably what is irritating your skin.

Go to your piercer and get his opinion. If you know for sure that it is rejecting, then take it out immediately to decrease scarring.

Smoking can cause extra swelling and infection. It should be avoided 2-3 weeks after getting your tongue pierced.

The safest metal for a new body piercing is surgical stainless steel. When you get a piercing, ensure that the metal used isn't sterling silver (which is fine for when the piercing is fully healed), nickel or gold. These metals can slow the healing process and lead to infection. When you purchase jewelry for a new piercing, ensure that it isn't a hypoallergenic metal.

No, twisting a piercing is the same as picking a scab, you’re just making it take longer to heal.