Newly pierced ears...advice needed..

[timetosmile]

I had my ears pierced for the first time three days ago, normal sterile procedure etc. and gold studs put in.
Can I have some advice and cleaning/care? They are slightly pink and a little bit sore, but I don't think there is an infection as the symptoms are very mild. I have been twiddling them round and using hydrogen peroxide (a bit like dilute savlon) to clean the skin twice a day.
Is this normal? Am I doing the right thing? How long do I keep up the daily cleaning? How would I know if there was an infection developing which means I should take the earring out?
All advice gratefully received!

[princessvikki]

Don't use hydrogen peroxide it's to strong and will kill good healing bacteria as well as the bad. Clean them twice a day. Use a mix of pre boiled water and a pinch of salt, then some tea tree oil leave 5 mins, salt wash again and rinse with clean pre boiled water. The tea tree will clear up ant minor infection and prevent any more.

[Allie82]

I always cleaned mine morning and night with plenty of surgical spirit dripping on a cotton ball. It stings like hell but it will ensure they heal.

[specialsubject]

no real evidence that tea tree oil is an antiseptic. Surgical spirit on a clean cotton wipe (new one each time) is what I used. And much cheaper!

[seaoflove]

Don't twiddle and don't use hydrogen peroxide. Standard advice is to use saline and soap and water in the shower.

Tea tree oil is too strong so I wouldn't use that either.

[nether]

The advice we had when DD was pierced was to leave them alone as much as possible. No twiddling. Keep your hands off them, even though the temptation is closed irresistable.

Clean with saline solution.

If you don't want to make up your own saline, contact lens cleaner is pretty much the same stuff as the (overpriced) bottles that piercers sell, for less than half the price (pharmacist in Boots said it was safe for ear cleaning).

[madamginger]

Savlon make a spray called wound wash, it doesn't sting, just spray and leave it.

[PatsyNoPasta]

Don't twiddle. Leave them completely alone. Don't put your fingers anywhere near them. When they have healed, the scabs will fall off and your ears will be fine. You don't need to twiddle them to make sure the hole stays open. Each time you do it the scab needs to reform. I have several piercings and this was the best advice I was given.

[timetosmile]

Thanks everyone!
Three days in and all well..so far...

[PinkSparklyPussyCat]

My piercer recommended contact lens saline and it seems to have worked well. I don't twiddle, I just put a few drops of saline on twice a day and make sure any soap/shampoo is rinsed off in the shower.

[Lonz]

They should have given you a bottle of sterile fluid to clean your piercings for about 6 weeks? If not, I used Dettol antiseptic fluid for all my piercings if I ran out.
When you clean use a cotton bud to get little gunky bits off, front and back, and twist them round about twice. Try and get the cleaning solution on to the bar that goes through the piercing. Try and keep hir out of the way while they're healing. They will be sore for a bit but if you're concerned just go back and they will explain what you need to do. They should have told you the cleaning regime? And given you a leaflet/little bit of paper afterwards..?

[Lonz]

Try and keep hair* out of the way while they're healing.

And yes, you do twist them when cleaning (but do not touch them throughout the day with dirty hands) because this helps with the piercing not getting too gunked up and stuck when it comes to cleaning.

I also used Savlon spray too.

[icclemunchy]

Step dad is a piercer and did DD1s recently. His advice was leave them alone!! Give a clean with salt water if funky but other than that no twiddling nothing. They'll get a general clean when you shower etc so poking around with dirty hands is asking for trouble

[PinkSparklyPussyCat]

The opinion these days seems to be to leave alone completely or to use saline for cleaning.

Where did you have them pierced OP? Mine were done at a tattoo/piercing studio so I'm wondering if the advice is different at other places.

[PinkSparklyPussyCat]

Advice, not opinion - sorry!

[pinkyredrose]

And yes, you do twist them when cleaning (but do not touch them throughout the day with dirty hands) because this helps with the piercing not getting too gunked up and stuck when it comes to cleaning

Absolutely wrong advice. This will aggravate the piercing and make it wep more, it opens a healing wound meaning it's more open to infection and will also take longer to heal. Leave it alone!!!!!! Clean with a weak sae salt solution, that is all you need.

[pinkyredrose]

weep not wep

[PinkSparklyPussyCat]

I've just looked on the Claire's website and as part of the aftercare they say that, to help healing and avoid potential problems, earrings should be twisted 2-3 times a day! No wonder there's confusion when they are still giving out of date advice.

I'm making it my mission to make sure my friends' children don't go to Claire's!

[SquirmOfEels]

DD was done at a proper piercing place.

The advice was not to twist, and to clean with saline. One bit of cotton wool per ear (to avoid cross contamination) and as you probably can't avoid moving the posts in the holes a bit whilst you clean, don't twiddle. All twiddling does is knock scabs off and slow down healing.

They also recommended not changing the earrings for 8 weeks (not the usual 6).

[pinkyredrose]

I've just looked on the Claire's website and as part of the aftercare they say that, to help healing and avoid potential problems, earrings should be twisted 2-3 times a day

Sigh. Claires are not body piercers, they know fuck all about piercing.

[Lonz]

I'm sorry but I have had my ears pierced and various other body parts fuck knows how many times and I followed the advice they gave me with each piercing and I had absolutely no problems. No infections. It's a wound that needs cleaning. You can't have an uncleaned wound and expect it to heal properly.

All my piercings were done at a proper piercing and tattoo shop. A friend of mine didn't clean hers and she got an infection, but each to their own!

[pinkyredrose]

Lonz yes keep it clean but no twisting the jewllery

[Lonz]

I did while cleaning, twisted stud round, but not throughout the day. Didn't weep or anything. No scabs came off. But it appears that different places tell you different things.

[Ohbollocksandballs]

Don't twiddle! Clean with 1/4 teaspoon of sea salt to a mug of boiling water. If they start to feel irritated, soak in the sea salt solution (easier said than done)

[PinkSparklyPussyCat]

Pinky please don't think I class Claire's as an authority on piercing! I looked on the website as I was curious about what 'advice' they're giving out. I wouldn't dream of going there for a piercing!

Regarding the cleaning/twisting debate, I was told to clean with saline solution by putting a few drops on the piercing twice a day and never to twist. The piercings I've had so far have healed well.