Your piercing has been done under clean, professional conditions.
Now it's up to you to take proper care of it. The chances of infection are minimal with proper aftercare. We have found that most problems/irritations occur when handling or touching the piercing with unclean hands, being too rough with it or moving it excessively, and improper cleaning. Swimming in any unclean or chlorinated water is strongly discouraged for the first month. Stay out of any body of water; including ponds, lakes, oceans, pools, and hot tubs, they are filled with bacteria and can quickly lead to infection, even if cleaned immediately after contact.

How will I know if my piercing is infected or irritated?
Slight redness or mild bruising is normal for the first few days. There may be a dry build-up or slight discharge, this is also normal. This discharge is a natural substance that your body secretes during the healing process; do not mistake this for pus which is a thick, dark green discharge. While infections can only be diagnosed by a physician it is important to know that many common piercing related irritations are often mistaken for infections. Most irritations can be fixed quite easily by simply changing your aftercare routine or jewelry. One of the most common irritations with a new body piercing comes from chemicals. Never use any harsh chemicals or ointments on your piercing such as; listerine, hibiclens, betadine / iodine, rubbing alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, bacitracin, neosporin, Bactine / ear care solution, Epsom salt, etc. as they will greatly impede the healing process and possibly cause damage to your skin.
It is usually best not to remove jewelry in a piercing you suspect may be irritated or infected since this will close off any passageway for the discharge to escape. If you think the problem is serious come in for your piercer to look at it or visit a piercing knowledgeable doctor.

How will I know if my piercing is rejecting?
Remember, all piercings can reject, though some have a higher tendency to do so. There is usually little or no pain associated with rejection. The signs to watch for are enlargement of the openings of the piercing, along with some scar-like redness, discharge of a clear fluid, itching, and rash. Not all bodies will accept the piercing you have selected. Sometimes trying a different type of material will help improve the piercing, cheap jewelry can easily cause an allergic reaction leading to rejection. Be aware that with most problems, poor aftercare is usually a main factor. Should your piercing show signs of rejection get in touch with your piercer as soon as possible. Jewelry may need to be removed to prevent excessive scarring.

How can I help my piercing heal?
You can do lots of things to help your piercing heal quickly and easily. Do not play with your piercing or touch it with dirty hands, eat a nutritious diet, a zinc supplement or multi-vitamin may help also. Clean your piercing on a regular schedule and stick to it. Consider following the aftercare suggestions provided to you by a PROFESSIONAL body piercer, friendly advice is often incorrect. We have found that for most piercings Sea Salt Solution is usually the best aftercare product to use since it does not irritate skin like most chemicals. There are mixing instructions for sea salt solution on the last page of this document. Remember that improper cleaning can lead to several problems such as irritation, soreness, scarring, rejection, and prolonged healing.

It is always important to make sure you start your aftercare procedure by washing your hands. Remember that your hands come in more contact with germs and bacteria than any other part of you body, so it is important that you don't transfer those germs to your new piercing.
Healing time is different for everyone, and every piercing. Some piercings may heal very fast; tongues for instance can heal very quickly, sometimes in as little as 4 weeks. While navels and cartilage can take longer amounts of time to heal completely, sometimes 6 months or more. It is important to leave jewelry in a new piercing during the initial healing period, although you may think it is healed it may still take several weeks or months for the piercing to Atoughen up@. As a general guideline if your piercing is sore, red, or otherwise irritated it is probably not ready to be changed. If you have any questions about changing or removing jewelry feel free to call or stop by.

HOW TO CLEAN A PIERCING: FACIAL, EAR, NAVEL, SURFACE, GENITAL, ETC.
With a body piercing less is more. You don't want to overload the healing process with unnessecary chemicals or agitation. Sea Salt Solution (mixing instructions on last page) is usually the best aftercare product to use for any piercing as it is non-irritating and easy to make yourself. Simply mix your solution and apply to a cotton swab and gently dab your piercing enough to moisten the area. You can gently clean away excess dried build-up or discharge but use caution to not over-agitate a piercing. Once done leave the solution on the skin to air dry, you do not need to wipe it away. Turning or moving jewelry is not required and will often damage or irritate your piercing so try to avoid moving any unhealed piercing. Clean your piercing this way a few times a day during the first few weeks, or as needed. Sea Salt Solution also helps to soothe irritated or sore piercings. You can try soaking the piercing in the solution or use a warm wet compress a few times a day. Mild soaps (Satin, Provon, Dial) can also be used if the piercing is sore or irritated but they'll often over-dry a piercing and are rarely beneficial.
Use caution when changing your clothes so you don't catch or snag any jewelry. Also avoid chemicals which may irritate a piercing, make up and facial wash on facial piercings, shampoo with ear piercings, etc. Try to avoid overly tight clothes that may rub against piercings such as a navel, nipple, or surface piercing. Also keep in mind that with a genital piercing it is crucial to limit sexual contact and use barriers (condoms, etc.) for at least the first 8-12 weeks to prevent infection and STDs.

HOW TO CLEAN AN ORAL PIERCING: TONGUE, LIP, LABRET, MONROE, ETC.
For an oral piercing such as a Tongue or Lip make sure to avoid harsh alcohol based mouthwashes such as Listerine or Scope. Also avoid peroxide based mouthwashes such as Gly-Oxide. They cause many problems including irritation and prolonged healing. You will want to use a gentle antibacterial non-alcohol mouthwash such as Tech 2000 or Biotene (available at most pharmacies and grocery stores). Product availability may vary, but any antibacterial non-alcohol mouthwash should be adequate. Rinse your mouth 3-5 times a day during the first few weeks, or as needed. Make sure to rinse for a full 30 seconds for maximum efficiency and germ reduction. Rinsing after meals is suggested, but do not rinse your mouth too frequently or excessively.
For any Lip piercing rinse your mouth as instructed above, and also clean the outside of your lip with sea salt solution as outlined in the above section.

The area of any oral piercing will swell. It is for this reason that you want to be gentle eating for the first few days to avoid biting your jewelry or catching it on your teeth. Also avoid any irritants such as excessively salty or spicy foods, alcohol, smoking, or any tobacco products. If the swelling gets annoying you can chew on crushed up ice to reduce swelling, but proper aftercare is the best way to avoid swelling in the first place. You may want to consider changing oral piercing jewelry once the initial healing period is up (4-6 weeks) to a slightly shorter piece to lessen potential gum and tooth damage. It is crucial not to engage in oral contact of any kind with any unhealed piercing, this means no deep kissing or oral sex with a new piercing for at least the first 4-6 weeks!*

Special note on increasing jewelry size (stretching your piercing): It is crucial to wait until your piercing is fully healed before you increase jewelry thickness so as not to cause healing problems or scarring. Once healed a piercing should never be stretched more than one gauge size per every six (6) weeks. Stretching too fast can easily lead to severe scarring. If you have any questions about stretching a piercing consult your body piercer.

Below we've listed the names and brief descriptions for the aftercare products mentioned in this form, we have also listed some alternatives (with their possible drawbacks) in the event that you cannot locate your primary aftercare products. Consult your piercer or a piercing knowledgeable doctor if you have any problems with your aftercare products. We have found that for most piercings, Sea Salt solution is usually best. Remember, improper cleaning can slow healing time by several weeks and possibly lead to scarring, rejection, or other problems.

-Soaps- Satin (preferred soap) / Provon- antimicrobial soap containing PCMX (chloroxylenol), very effective at fighting bacteria while being very gentle on the skin. Dial / Softsoap- mild antibacterial soaps with the active ingredient triclosan can be over-drying and irritating to some. If you choose to use this product try a sensitive skin version without dyes or perfumes. Dr. Bronner's peppermint castile soap- a great alternative soap for people with sensitive skin, it does however have very little natural antibacterial effect.
-Topical Cleansers- Sea Salt Solution (preferred aftercare)- very gentle on the skin but also highly effective for aftercare. H2Ocean- a pre-mixed, sterile sea salt water spray with added antibiotic enzymes, very convenient and easy to use, often speeds healing and helps eliminate most simple irritations.
-Mouthwashes- Biotene, Tech 2000, Oral-B Rembrandt Dazzling Fresh- non-alcohol mouthwashes, highly effective at reducing bacteria while also being very gentle on oral tissue. Sea Salt Solution- sea salt solution can also be used as a mouth rinse, mix your own or use a pre-mixed sea salt rinse such as H2Ocean oral piercing care.

H2Ocean is a great product for most body piercings, it is a sterile sea salt spray with added natural antibiotics. It's very easy to use since it's pre-mixed and comes in a spray canister. If you choose to use H2ocean as your aftercare product simply spray it onto the piercing a few times a day, you don't even need to touch it. H2Ocean is available here at Precision Body Arts as well as other piercing studios and piercing jewelry stores.

MIXING INSTRUCTIONS FOR SEA SALT SOLUTION:
Dissolve 1/4 a teaspoon of sea salt in eight ounces of distilled, bottled, or purified water. Use daily to clean your piercing. You can also use Sea Salt water as a soak or compress to help heal irritated piercings. Make sure you do not use the sea salt too frequently or use too strong a mixture as this can easily over-dry your skin. Use only pure sea salt with no additives (no table salt, no Epsom salt), which is available at supermarkets and health food stores.

Taking a mild non-aspirin, non-steroidal pain medication (Tylenol, Advil, Motrin, etc.) to reduce pain or swelling is at your discretion. If you do choose to use a pain medication consult a doctor or pharmacist for recommendations and follow package instructions.

Thank you for choosing Precision Body Arts. If you have any questions feel free to stop in, or contact Ryan, PBA's senior piercer.
Shop phone #: 1-603-889-5788, E-Mail: RyanPBA@hotmail.com