How Long Does It Take for a Septum Piercing to Heal? What to Expect
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The Best Guide About How Long Does It Take for a Septum Piercing to Heal? What to Expect
Septum piercings are edgy and trendy choices for those who want to show off cool jewelry or express their style. However, you may have many doubts after getting one.
‘How long does it take for a septum piercing to heal? What should I expect after getting my nose pierced?’ – Those are some of the questions that may come to your mind.
Fortunately, you can find the answers here. Read on and learn about post-septum piercing healing stages and some aftercare considerations that will help you.
How Long Does It Take for My Nose Piercing to Heal?
The healing period after getting a septum piercing depends on several factors, including how careful you are after the procedure.
If you follow your piercer’s recommendations, it will heal faster than you think! In addition, there are some things that you should avoid, such as excessively touching or washing the septum ring.
Your septum can start to bleed if you don’t leave your piercing alone, turn it up, or clean it more times than necessary. Consequently, it can increase infection risks and slow down the healing process.
Depending on the type of piercing, the recovery time can also vary. These are the estimated averages:
● Nostril piercing: 2-4 months or six months in improper conditions
● Septum piercing: 3-4 months or 6-8 months if it’s a septum piercing through the cartilage
● Bridge piercing: 8-12 weeks
● Rhino piercing: 6-9 months as it goes through the nose’s tip vertically
● Nasal piercing: 4-6 months
You should also keep in mind that you may go through some healing stages after getting your septum pierced. Find a more detailed explanation of each below.
The Healing Process After a Septum Piercing: Three Stages You May Experience
As mentioned, healing times vary. However, knowing what you could experience after the procedure can help speed healing.
Often, people go through three healing stages after getting their nose pierced. These are:
Painful Period: It Looks Amazing, but It Hurts
How long does it take for a septum piercing to heal? The first stage comes after a piercer places the ring on your nose and it’s fully inserted. As you may think, it’s the most painful and probably the longest period.
septum piercing pain scale 1-10 ? This process is not pain-free. After getting your septum pierced, you may experience discomfort for the first two to three weeks. Some people only feel pain during the first seven days.
However, if you tend to touch or turn your nose ring frequently, this stage can be longer.
When someone touches your piercing a lot and causes the septum to swell, the first phase of the healing process can last up to eight weeks.
In other words, nose piercing aftercare for the painful stage is mandatory and requires the highest level of care and dedication.
Professional piercers often recommend people take anti-inflammatory medications to reduce swelling during this period.
In the first stage, you should also keep your nose clean. Experts say that doing at least two seal salt solution soaks daily is essential to kill bacteria and prevent infection.
Another tip that can be very useful during this stage is to use a piercing aftercare spray. It’s a wound wash saline solution that cleans the nose ring’s surface, dehydrating germs and killing them off.
Most people should use piercing aftercare sprays three to six times a day, but your piercer should tell you how often you should apply this solution after your procedure.
Initial Healing Period: Your Nose Is Finally Not Swollen
Did you develop any infection during the first stage? If not, that’s awesome! It means you have started your healing process on the right foot. However, there are other things you should consider.
In the second stage, your septum no longer looks swollen, the area is not tender, and the pain disappears. You can also touch or even change the nose ring without running the risk of causing bleeding.
However, the scar has yet to heal. Therefore, you may also need saline solutions to cleanse your nose during this period.
Although they should not be as frequent as before, warm sea salt soaks can help keep the piercing area clean, benefiting healing.
Final Healing Period: You Feel like a Rock Star
How long does it take for a septum piercing to heal? As you get closer to this stage, you may feel more confident about your piercing. Once it’s fully healed, you can change, touch, and turn it without causing bleeding or increasing the risk of infection.
However, you should keep in mind that the scar formed around the ring is fragile because it barely dried. Therefore, you must make sure you don’t do anything that could irritate the area.
Depending on the piercer’s recommendations, you can continue to use saline solutions to clean your nose from time to time.
when can i change my septum piercing? If you plan to change your jewelry to create new looks or only see how you look with a new nose ring design, always choose high-quality pieces.
Low-quality jewelry can double or even triple your healing time and increase your infection risks massively. That’s something you don’t want, right?
Potential Risks Associated with Septum Piercings You Should Consider
There are some risks associated with septum piercings that you should consider before undergoing the procedure.
If you choose a professional and reputable piercer that follows safety measures, potential risks greatly reduce.
However, knowing them is essential to detect any problem that may arise after getting your nose pierced. The most common are:
Infections
No matter how small, skin breaks can allow bacteria to enter your body, causing an infection.
If the piercing area gets infected, you may notice redness, swelling, pus, or discharge. In most cases, infections also cause pain.
However, keeping the area clean and following aftercare recommendations can reduce the risk of infection.
Allergic Reactions
Some people are allergic to materials used to create piercing jewelry, mainly nickel.
In fact, the most severe skin reactions to jewelry are caused by the nickel contained in many jewelry metals.
Anyone can be allergic to nickel regardless of their age. The skin reaction usually appears within the first 12-48 hours after contact with the jewelry.
You may notice an allergic reaction to the nose piercing piece you have chosen if there are itchy, red rash with watery blisters.
Once you develop an allergy to nickel, your skin will have a reaction every time you touch the metal. That’s why you should disclose your allergies to the piercer before undergoing the procedure.
Septal Hematoma
A septal hematoma forms when blood collects in the septum and usually appears if any injury, including those caused by piercings, disrupts the blood vessels and damages the tissue lining the cartilage.
When blood collects between the two, you may experience pain, pressure, swelling, and congestion.
Bloodborne Diseases
Getting a piercing also poses risks of contracting bloodborne diseases, such as tetanus, hepatitis B and C, and HIV.
Commonly, these diseases are caught from unsterilized needles. Therefore, you must corroborate that the piercer you hire follows all safety measures and uses only fresh and sterile needles.
Scarring
Although scars caused by piercings are not visible and don’t usually cause aesthetic problems, some formations or excessive scar tissue may appear.
These formations are known as keloids and can be uncomfortable even though they do not usually cause much pain.
The risks of developing keloids increase if you pull on your jewelry piercing or move it frequently during the healing process. In some cases, they also appear when you take your nose ring off for good or if you get an infection.
Migration and Tearing
If you don’t follow proper aftercare, your jewelry piercing could move from its original place.
While it may not seem like a big deal at first, you should contact your piercer as soon as possible if this happens to avoid infection.
How to Detect If There Is Something Wrong
Now that you understand the risks of septum piercing, you should know the signs that may indicate something is wrong. The most common are:
● Fever
● Redness or swelling around the piercing
● Lump or thickened tissue around the nose ring
● Itching
● Tender skin
● Pressure
● Severe or worsening pain
● Yellowish or greenish gunk coming out of the wound
If you notice any of these signs, don’t hesitate to call your doctor!
Can Something Affect How Long Does It Take for a Septum Piercing to Heal?
Now that you understand how long does it take for a septum piercing to heal? and the risks, you should also know the factors that can influence the healing process.
Using Water
Since it can contain bacteria, submerging the piercing in water can increase the risk of infection and delay the healing process.
Unless you are cleaning the piercing, you should keep your nose out of the water. Also, remember that it’s best to use saline for hygienic purposes.
Nose Scratching
You should not touch the forming scabs constantly. Otherwise, you can cause additional sores or bleeding.
Pulling at the crust or scabs can also tear the skin under the piercing, making it take longer to heal.
Accidents
If you accidentally catch your piercing on your clothing and pull on it, the area can become irritated, resulting in longer healing times.
Touching or Playing with the Jewel
In addition to causing infection, picking and playing with septum rings can prolong the healing process.
If you leave your piercing alone, it will heal faster. Also, not touching or shaking the wound reduces the risk of introducing bacteria to the area.
Cleaning Regime
Both under-cleaning and over-cleaning can make your piercing healing period longer.
Using strong products can irritate the area. Consequently, as irritated skin loses protection against bacteria, it can also increase the risks of infection.
Inappropriate Jewelry and Methods
Jewelry too small for piercings can sink into the piercing and cause irritation, delaying the healing process.
Choosing jewelry of poor quality or made from inappropriate materials can also increase risks and cause the wound to take longer to heal or not heal completely.
Also, some improper methods cause trauma to the nose’s tissue, forming lumps or scars. Therefore, you must find a reliable and experienced piercer!
Rights reserved to Brenna Neal for the YouTube video
Final Thoughts About How Long Does It Take for a Septum Piercing to Heal?
As you can see, although the septum usually does most of its healing in the first two to three months, each person may experience different recovery times. How long does it take for a septum piercing to heal? Some don’t even have fully healed piercings until eight months later.
However, some factors can make the process faster or take longer. Fortunately, if you follow the advice of the experts, your septum piercing will heal sooner than you think!
What does a septum piercing say about you?
Even though body piercings have been practiced for countless generations, their placement and motivation have often changed.
Consider getting a tattoo. They were viewed as a symbol of disobedience in the Western World, which was long ruled by Christendom. The perception of tattoos has altered with modern culture. Even while it’s not generally recognized, there are some circumstances when you can get away with it.
On the other hand, among Polynesians, getting a tattoo is a sign of respect and esteem. Depending on how many tattoos a person had, it was regarded as a sign of strength. Among other things, they also contained the history of the family.
More useful related septum piercing articles:
How to Clean Septum Piercing Throughout the Healing Process
How Much Does a Septum Piercing Cost? Everything You Need to Know
Do Septum Piercings Hurt? Everything You Should Know about Them
