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Piercing Advice

Jackie Susann

05:39 / 13.08.02

A couple of weeks ago I got my nipples pierced. They seem to be healing pretty well, but a whole bunch of friends with piercings insist I should be turning the jewellery, which is the exact opposite of what the piercer said - that i should leave it or i'd just be ripping up the scabs. My inclination is to trust the piercer but so many people have said this it's starting to bother me. Maybe it's different cause i got bars instead of rings? Does anybody have any suggestions about this?

6opow

05:51 / 13.08.02

I am not a piercing expert by any means, but I did my own nipple a number of years ago (an interesting ordeal to be certain) and I don't seem to recall any turning involved in the healing process--my nipple did fine: no infection. Probably best to follow what the piercing guy said

Mourne Kransky

08:10 / 13.08.02

Sounds like there may indeed be a great schism in the tit-piercing fraternity about this then, DPC, since when I had mine done the piercer did suggest daily turning, after cleaning the accretions off.

But, whatever, I'd trust your piercer. You trusted him to gouge a path through your chest, twice, with a catheter, after all. Wouldn't trust any of my friends to do that.

STOATIE LIEKS CHOCOLATE MILK

11:09 / 13.08.02

I'd go with ZoCher on this one... trust the piercer. (When I got my tattoo, one of the instructions was "don't trust your friends about this"- which Barry Auckland had already told me HE'd been told when he got his.)
However... I seem to remember I couldn't resist messing about with 'em when they were done. And they both healed fine.
BUT! (and a but following a however makes for confusion... sorry...) if you ain't gonna trust your friends, how can you trust your imaginary friends?

Just keep the fuckers clean, and don't take too many amphetamines or otherwise temporary-destroying-of-the-immune-system goodies. Soon as you get any problem, get it checked out.

Ignore me. (Not it THAT way!) believe your piercer.

bio k9

12:20 / 13.08.02

My piercer told me to soak them in a shot glass filled with warm saltwater. The main thing is to keep them clean and make sure they dont start getting all red and puffy. Red & puffy = bad. If you decide to rotate them, do it in the shower. Clean them with antibacterial soap while youre rotating them and keep rotating them while you rinse them off. Also use Bactine. Bactine is your friend. Dont do anything stupid that will scratch your piercings (if you decide to take them out leave the pliers alone and go back to the piercer), scratches will harbor germs. At first, mine stood straight out whenever I got hot and sweaty but that stopped over time. If yours are sticking out make sure you dont roll over on them in the middle of the night- it hurts like a motherfucker.

bio k9

12:22 / 13.08.02

And after youve had them for a while you woln't really need to pay them any special attention.

This thread pops up a lot, maybe we should have a nipple FAQ or something.

The Bitch

01:22 / 15.08.02

yes, use salt water but, do now turn them, put on the spectrogel while in the shower (should be the LAST thing you wash) and gently move back and forth, do not rotate them or turn them.... from one with pierced nipples to another!

Jack Sprat

02:08 / 15.08.02

It is my understanding that rippin out them scabs is exactly what you're after. If you don't, the skin can grow back around the jewelry, and that's when you get things like infections and, later on, a tendency for the jewelry to migrate out, leaving you with a big honkin scar and no jewelry.

I learned all this from a late friend who taught piercing in Seattle to people who came from as far as Australia and Ireland for the privilege.

If they were my holes, I'd twirl the buggers until the crusties go away.

Or not.

MissLenore

03:10 / 15.08.02

Don't know how relevent this is since I can only go by my lip piercing, but I was told to rotate the jewelry. Same with ear piercings. I was never told WHY, though what Jack Sprat says does make sense.
But as I said, that is in relation to a lip piercing, not nipples, so I'd go with what the piercer told you. You'll probably end up moving them around anyway, just because the temptation to do so will be too great after being told NOT to.

Jackie Susann

00:02 / 19.08.04

Well I thought I would resurrect this for my new piercing problem.

As demonstrated above, I got my nipples pierced about two years ago. Now they've healed fine, except any even moderately heavy tit torture leaves them with really gross scabs around the ends of the barbells that last for days and days. I am not sure if this is just the way it goes and I should relax, or if this is my body's way of saying 'these chunks of metal, they are not supposed to be here, particularly if you are going to insist on having people gnaw on/attach alligator clips to them'. Also, it means I really can't do any nipple play two days in a row since they're too sore the second day. And I like that nipple play, yes I do. But I like my piercings too, so I'm not quite sure.

Anyone got any thoughts?

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