Yes, a nose piercing can absolutely grow over, or close up, because skin heals itself; fresh piercings close very quickly (hours/days), while older, well-healed ones take longer (weeks/months) but can still shrink or fully seal if jewelry is removed, especially with irritation or poor aftercare. The speed depends on how long you've had it, with newer piercings closing faster as the tissue is still forming, but even years-old piercings can close if left without jewelry.
As permanent as any piercings - when the jewelry is removed, the hole can and will grow closed. How quickly that happens is individually different. For some people, the hole all but vanishes in a few weeks or even days, some people still have a usable hole years later.
Five ways to get rid of a nose piercing bump
Summary: fresh holes can begin closing within hours; healed lobes typically take weeks to months; cartilage and long-term piercings may take months or may never fully close.
Generally, the longer you've had the nose piercing, the more likely it is to stay open. A fresh piercing can close in just a few minutes or hours, and if you've had the piercing for less than a year, it can close within a few days. Even a piercing that is several years old can close within several weeks.
If your piercing is fresh (less than 2 – 4 months old), the hole can close up in a matter of minutes or even seconds. If you've had a nose piercing for less than a year, you can expect it to close up or the piercing to shrink significantly within a few hours or days.
If the hole feels slightly closed, a piercing taper (a small, thin guide tool) can help reopen it without pain. Slowly insert the taper before following with your nose stud. If your jewellery isn't sliding in, try using a piercing retainer first.
Even old piercings can close, but it usually takes longer. Some may never close completely but can shrink or become too tight to reinsert jewelry without stretching or tapering.
As a result, getting re-pierced in the same location can be a good location for a piercing to be re-established. This is because the dense tissue will support the piercing and be less prone to infection. It does depend on the way your piercing has healed, and the type of scar tissue.
The "3/2 ear piercing rule" (or 2:3 ratio) is a styling guideline for a balanced ear curation, suggesting that for every two piercings (often in the lobes), you have three units of space, or alternatively, for every three piercings, you have two units of space, aiming for a harmonious, uncluttered look with graduating jewelry sizes and clear gaps between piercings for visual appeal and healing. It's about proportion, often pairing two lobe piercings with three upper cartilage piercings, or spacing piercings out to avoid crowding, with larger jewelry on the lobe and smaller studs higher up.
Hypertrophic piercing bumps and keloids are different skin conditions that can occur following a piercing. Piercing bumps tend to appear more quickly and do not grow in size, while keloids take time to form and can continue to grow. A healthcare professional or dermatologist can advise on the best way to treat keloids.
Piercing rejection
Consult a professional and reputable piercer immediately! They most likely will replace the jewelry with a longer bar and/or address any irritation to prevent further complications. Ignoring embedding can lead to infections, improper healing, or complete jewelry embedding (which may require surgical removal).
Age of the Piercing
Older Piercings : A piercing that has been in place for several years is less likely to close quickly. In many cases, such a piercing might never fully close but will instead shrink over time.
Piercing migration is the body's response to foreign material in the body. The immune system may attempt to reject and move your piercing from its original spot to a new one. This can lead to piercing bumps that migrate the piercing, causing it to move and become crooked!
While some nose piercings barely leave a trace after closing, it's possible for a scar to form due to factors such as genetics, poor aftercare, or infection. To help reduce the risk of scarring and prevent the need for your piercing to close, there are factors to keep in mind before, during, and after a nose piercing.
Most piercers will place the new piercing behind any pockets of scar tissue to ensure the piercing is in a more viable location, though it is worth remembering that as scar tissue is weaker in construction than the skin1, this method doesn't necessarily guarantee success.
A nose piercing typically ranks around a 4-7 out of 10 on the pain scale, varying by person and location; nostril piercings are often a quick, sharp pinch (around 4-6/10), while septum piercings can feel intense but brief (around 6-7/10), especially if the cartilage is thick, though it's generally considered manageable and quick to heal.
Those risks include:
Nose Piercing Closure Time
If it's new, it could close within minutes. If you got the piercing a few months to less than a year ago, it might close up in just a few hours or days. Even if you've had a nose piercing for a few years, the inside of the piercing hole can still close up quickly.
Follow the piercer's instructions on cleaning the piercing until it's healed. Even old piercings can become infected. For example, bacteria on dirty jewelry, skin or hands can transfer to your piercing. Editor's Note: This article was originally published on December 16, 2022 , and was last reviewed on July 20, 2023 .
Removing a piece of jewelry may seem to cause no harm since the area is healed; however, while the piercing may be fully shaped and the tissue regrown around it, it's not permanent. Extremely old piercings—like those received in childhood or decades ago—may even take a long time to close up without jewelry.
Push or Screw In
Depending on what kind of nose stud you've got, you'll either need to push it through the piercing or screw it in. If it's a push in nose stud, gently nudge it until it slips into place snugly. But if you're dealing with a screw-on stud, twist the backing clockwise, nice and easy until it's secure.
Re-stretching a piercing may hurt a bit, but it means you get to avoid complications that come with re-piercing, such as scar tissue and delayed healing.
A fully closed piercing will have no visible hole, while a shrunken piercing might still have a small indentation or dimple, or sometimes even a visible hole. A shrunken piercing channel may allow for re-opening and jewelry insertion, while a fully closed channel will require re-piercing.