Are my piercings infected??!! The leading infections to your piercings usually come from having them pierced yourself. Self piercings are more dangerous and prone to becoming infected for numerous reasons such as, tools, non-sterilized/shared equipments, etc. It’s always best to see a professional piercer with a clean shop to prevent these possible problems.
Now if you had them done professionally from a piercer, here are some simple steps to check if your piercings are infected.
- Check for redness – Most of the time a fresh piercing will be a little red, but if the redness does not go away or it becomes darker, there could be a possibility that it’s infected.
- Swelling – If your swelling does not go away for an extended period of time after getting them pierced, there is a good chance it is infected.
- Discharge or pus – Pus is the most obvious sign of an infection. White pus tends to indicate a very minor infection, which you can simply continue with the normal cleansing process. In a serious infection, pus will either be yellow or green.
- Degree of pain – After the piercing/punctured wound – stinging, aching, or burning for a few days is normal. However, if you feel any sharp pains while touch the area might be a sign of infection.
- Fever/chills/nausea – Fever, nausea, and chills are a definite sign of trouble. It can lead to a very serious infection, or due to allergic reaction to the type of metal used during your initial piercing. Consult a doctor is these effects occur, these are not normal reactions to piercings
Now that you are aware of the symptoms to an infection, lets get into how you can treat the infection.
- Never take the jewelry out! – If you do, then the infection might get trapped inside, which can lead to a bump around your piercings.
- Salt water solution – Mix 1/8 table spoon of salt per cup of water. Use sea salt or rock salt, not table salt. You cant use table salt because it has iodine in it.
- DO NOT touch your piercings!! – Simple – L.I.T.H.A (Leave it the hell alone!), if you do decide to touch it, WASH WASH WASH your hands, Bacteria infected hands are the number 1 cause of an infection.
- Wear loose clothing if your piercing is constantly rubbing on them.
- Go see your piercer! – Your piercers know best, they might offer you some aftercare solutions, etc.
