When skin grows over a piercing, it usually means your body is trying to close the hole, often due to swelling (needing a longer bar), irritation, or infection, a condition called embedding; but it can also refer to benign hypertrophic scars (bumps) or more serious keloids, which are overgrowths of scar tissue. You need to see a piercer or doctor ASAP to identify the type (embedding vs. bump vs. keloid) and prevent the jewelry from being fully engulfed, which could require surgery.
Leave it alone - This might seem silly, but really... The more you touch or poke at your piercings, the longer your bumps will stick around. Do your best to leave them alone as much as possible! Be careful with bumps and snags, too.
A piercing is rejecting when your body pushes the jewelry out, signaled by signs like the jewelry moving from its original spot, the tissue thinning and becoming see-through, the hole getting bigger, prolonged redness/irritation, or the jewelry hanging differently. Key indicators are the skin between the entrance and exit holes shrinking, the jewelry becoming more visible under the skin, and the skin looking shiny, dry, or flaky, meaning your body perceives the jewelry as a foreign object.
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).
A little bleeding, swelling, or redness is normal after a piercing. As it heals, if you notice new redness in the area, you can treat it with warm compresses and an antibacterial ointment. But if it isn't better in 5 to 7 days, it could be infected.
The "3-2 piercing rule" is a popular guideline for creating a balanced ear piercing arrangement, suggesting three piercings on the lobe and two on the upper cartilage for a harmonious, curated look, or applying a 2:3 ratio of piercings to space for overall balance, often pairing small studs with statement pieces for a chic, "undone" style that avoids overcrowding and emphasizes personal anatomy.
A keloid won't go away on its own, even if you remove the earring. Instead, you must visit an experienced plastic surgeon for keloid treatment or removal. After surgically removing a keloid, we typically administer cortisone injections to shrink the keloid further and prevent new keloid formation.
My piercing is really swollen and my jewelry is sinking into my skin. This most often happens when the jewelry is not big enough to accommodate the initial swelling that happens after getting pierced.
If your piercing is, in fact, embedded in your flesh you need to make an emergency appointment with a trustworthy piercer. They should be able to help work the old jewelry out and replace it with longer jewelry that can accommodate the swelling and allow you piercing to heal properly from this.
Step-by-step Guide to Removing Stuck Earrings
Try to twist the back counterclockwise, like unlocking a treasure box. A warm compress can be your best friend in sticky situations. Some baby oil might just be the magical touch you need.
What piercings reject the most? Surface piercings have the highest rejection rate. Surface piercings such as microdermals as well as eyebrow piercings and navel piercings reject the most because they are closest to the surface of the skin.
Too much rubbing or friction can irritate your skin and delay healing. Keep the jewelry in place. Most piercings heal within about six weeks. But some might take several months or longer to heal.
Is my piercing rejecting or irritated? Rejection shows the jewelry migrating or the skin thinning, while irritation is localized redness.
It Takes 12 Months for a Piercing to Completely Heal
The skin has closed up, but still needs some time to fully rebuild its natural defences and skin flexibility.
You need to go to a reputable piercer and have them remove it. They'll assess whether it's a good idea to replace the jewellery with a new piece with a (much) longer post. Safepiercing.org has a search function to find an APP approved piercer in your area.
A piercing is rejecting when your body pushes the jewelry out, signaled by signs like the jewelry moving from its original spot, the tissue thinning and becoming see-through, the hole getting bigger, prolonged redness/irritation, or the jewelry hanging differently. Key indicators are the skin between the entrance and exit holes shrinking, the jewelry becoming more visible under the skin, and the skin looking shiny, dry, or flaky, meaning your body perceives the jewelry as a foreign object.
An infected piercing can be serious. The area around your piercing may be painful, swollen, red, and hot. You may see red streaks or pus at the piercing site. You may have a fever or swollen or tender lymph nodes.
If your piercing jewelry is starting to sink into your skin/tissue, see your piercer right away for a longer bar. Some piercing do embed slightly, we refer to this as 'nesting'. Lip and tongue piercings tend to do this as our oral tissue is very soft.
The 3/2 piercing rule is a guideline that helps determine a safe number of piercings for your ear's upper cartilage, specifically the helix and flat areas. The rule suggests that for every three units of unpierced cartilage, you can safely have two units of pierced cartilage. Think of it like a ratio.
In the beginning, clean your piercing twice a day, once in the morning and once before bed. Stick to this routine for at least 6 to 8 weeks or until it's fully healed. Once it's healed, you don't have to clean it as often, but it's still a good idea to rinse it now and then, especially if you wear earrings every day.
If a keloid develops around your ear piercing after the piercing has healed, contact a healthcare provider. They may recommend that you take your earring out right away and wear a pressure earring. Or they may recommend that you keep your earring in until they're able to conduct a physical examination of your ear.
Key Differences: How to Tell Them Apart
Early-stage Ear Keloids:
Ear keloids at their earliest stages appear in two distinct manners: Protruding papule on the surface of ear. This is by far the most frequently observed form of ear keloid at the site of a previous piercing. Inflammatory early-stage ear keloids.