Rejection

The rejection of piercings is usually straight forward.
The jewellery slowly starts to get closer to the surface of the skin. If it is left, it can eventually fall out. You have to remember that the skin is a living organism and it might not want to have foreign objects placed in it. Just because you choose to have a piece of jewellery inserted in your body, it does not mean that your body wants it there or will accept it.

Sometimes the type of jewellery can increase the risk of rejection. The process of rejection is easily detectable. It often starts with the area becoming sore and red. This is your body's way of telling you that there is something wrong. The skin pushes the jewellery towards its surface. If the process is left to follow its natural path, which would involve the skin finally breaking and the jewellery falling out, permanent scarring is common. If you remove the jewellery before this happens, it is not usual to have any long term scarring.

Sometimes, taking the jewellery out and letting the piercing settle, is the best approach. Then you can be re-pierced behind the scar tissue. In most cases this will make it a much stronger piercing.

Basically, you need to use your common sense. If the piercing is getting irritated, your body will try to remove the irritation by getting rid of the jewellery. The body will accept foreign objects if they are not causing irritation. Sometimes a piercing will be fine for years and then all of a sudden your body will try to reject it.

On a new piercing you will find that the jewellery will move a little bit. This is not necessarily a rejection. It may just mean that the piercing is settling in. This is more common in navel piercings. Your piercing may begin to reject and then stop. This can happen quite often and is usually caused by your body trying to find a comfortable position for the jewellery to sit. You can try stopping the rejection of a piercing by doing a number of things, i.e. changing the jewellery to a more suitable type, avoiding excess friction to the piercing etc. but if the body is determined to remove the piercing, there is not much that you can do to stop iit.

Keloids

These are usually caused by excess scar tissue growth formed as a callous by the body to protect the piercing from uncomfortable friction. They are difficult to get rid of so it is best to avoid circumstances that encourage keloid development. Which could be due to:

Also, if you knock a piercing hard, during the healing process, you are more likely to get a keloid. Removing the jewellery at the start of keloid formation and allowing the piercing to heal will often get rid of the keloid but some of us do not want to take the piercing out. Removal of the jewellery is not always necessary.

To aid the body in breaking down the keloid try one of the following:

• Hydrogen Peroxide 6% 20 vol. - Apply this to the piercing twice a day using a cotton bud. Leave it to fizz for a minute and then wipe off. It will take around a week to notice any difference.
• Vitamin E Oil - Put Vitamin E oil on the piercing and leave for 10 minutes. Then rinse off. Do this once a day.
• Tea Tree Oil - This can be a very effective natural alternative but it can be drying and too strong, even when diluted. Apply a small amount to the piercing and rotate the jewellery. Do not rinse off. Use no more than once a day.
• Hydrogen Peroxide 6% 20 vol. (Oral Piercings) - Apply this to the bump twice a day using a cotton bud. Leave it to fizz for a minute and then wipe off. It will take around a week to notice any difference.
• Anbesol (Oral Piercings) - Put a drop of Anbesol directly on the bump. This can also have a numbing effect and can provide temporary pain relief for any oral piercing. See packet for instructions on how to use.
• Aspirin (Oral Piercings - Only if you are not allergic to Aspirin. Wet a small piece of Aspirin and place it directly on the bump for 10 - 15 minutes. This will literally burn the bump off. This method is very strong so DO NOT use it more than once a day, three times a week. If your tongue begins to feel sore stop trying this method.

Start with the mildest method first and only try the stronger methods as a last resort.

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