More Nose Piercing FAQ

Here are a couple of new nose piercing questions that were asked recently.

My nose piercing is about 5 weeks old. It was ok until just a few weeks ago. I think it got infected and now I've got a blister that keeps forming and popping. I was told it's a cyst and I have to take my nose piercing out. I don't want to, so how can I heal this? I know lots of folks who got their noses pierced with guns and none of them had problems.

The majority of folks who contact me about problems mention having had their noses pierced with "guns." The devices are very blunt, causing a lot of tissue trauma, and they can't be sterilized properly, putting the person being pierced at risk for infections like Hepatitis C and HIV. The studs used are very blunt and tend to fit too tight to the nose.

You really need to go see a doctor or go to a reputable body piercer and have them diagnose what is happening to you. If you try to just leave the jewlery in and heal it, you'll most likely wind up with permanent scarring on your nose.

I really want to get my nose pierced but my job doesn't allow it. I'd love to have a cute little stud. Is there something I can do so that the jewelry doesn't show other than wearing a mask to work?

If your work doesn't allow nose piercings, why are you risking losing your job over a teensy dot of metal?

That's the worse case scenario. The second worse one is that you wear really tiny jewlery and they make you take out the piercing, at which point you will most likely have shelled out about $50, and all you'll get for it is a tiny healed dimple on your nose. I'm not sure what the point of that would be. (and yes, many nose piercings do leave some sort of dent/mark on your nose for the rest of your life even if you take it out)

You cannot wear a nylon or acrylic nose retainer for healing a piercing as the material is inappropriate for raw piercings and can cause increased adverse reactions, which really wouldn't help hide it.

And nose piercings take about three months to heal.... Are the co-workers at your office, and your boss, really going to feel ok if you wear a mask for three months?

I've personally never known anyone who worked at a place that forbid face piercings who was able to get and heal it without leaving their job.

If I have allergies, will that give me a problem if I get my nose pierced?

It's not the fluid in your nose that would be the issue, since you're not ill, but the physical need to wipe and blow your nose a lot. During healing, any bumping and tugging on the ring can cause increased irritation and friction. Too much of both of those and many people develop those bumpy keliod scars. If you have seasonal allergies, you might try getting your nose pierced during your "off-season" but if your allergies are year-round, this is probably not a good piercing for you.

For more on nose piercing, read more about them, or ask a nose piercing question. For body piercing aftercare, you might like Tattoo Goo Deluxe Tattoo & Piercing Care Kit or X-Pression & Blue Wave Piercing Aftercare Kit