Ear piercing problems: How to avoid?

Ear piercing problems happen even to those that are very careful. It is part of the body's reaction to fight off the strange metal post that is now shooting through it. Yet, there are plenty of things that you can do to avoid these problems and to have a successful piercing without pain and without the worry of infection. Infection is the leading cause of problems with ear piercing . Luckily, in most cases, it can be avoided without too much effort.

In order to have an ear piercing be successful, you need to do several things before, during and after you have your ear pierced. Here are some basic tips to help you to do this successfully.

Have them pierced professionally. Sure, it may cost you a bit more but it will save you quite a bit in emergency visits to the doctor or pain. In fact, one of the best places to actually have your piercing done is in a doctor's office. They will provide for the piercing if you would like them to and they can do it in such a way as to provide for sterilized equipment and all safety precautions taken. In short, they can do what you can not: sterilize 100% effectively.
Just don't touch it! One of the worst things that you can do is to play with your piercing once you have it done. It needs to be left alone. Consider what you touched just before you touched your ear. Perhaps it was a doorknob that many others touch. Or, perhaps you were just holding a railing that others with illness have touched. You are transferring these germs to your ear, which is an open wound at this point. Infection is likely to happen to those that touch their ears.
Do something. If you see the area beginning to swell or the area shows other signs of infection, call on a doctor quickly. Getting it taken care of quickly is necessary.
Clean as directed. In most cases, you will be given detailed instructions on how to clean the piercing. Do this as it is the best advice you can get. In most cases, you will want to use cotton tips or sterile gauze for cleaning. This will minimize what can happen to you.

What's Going To Happen?

If you do not take these necessary steps and you do not take care of your piercing, you are likely to get an infection in the location. For example, if you have your ear pierced and it does get infected, you need to react. If you do not, the infection can spread. In some extreme cases, people have lost half of their ear because of infections from a simple piercing. Deformities, infections that spread, and many more things can happen if you do not take the necessary steps to avoid ear piercing problems.