Not sure about healing times, restrictions, adverse reactions or any other doubts about piercings? Our Frequently Asked Questions page have all the answers. If you have any questions that are not answered here, please get in touch.
Unfortunately, we cannot pierce you with your own jewellery; we must use sterile titanium of a certain grade (Implant Grade 23) in compliance with the 1994 Nickel Directive. When it comes to jewellery changes, we will sometimes fit jewellery that has been purchased somewhere other than Paradox Body Jewellery, but this is at the piercer’s discretion as we cannot verify materials and quality for jewellery purchased elsewhere.
In most cases, you can make the switch from your starter jewellery around the 6–8-week mark, however this is just a guideline and can be longer in cases of complications and delayed/problematic healing. If you think your jewellery is ready to change, we advise visiting our sister shop, Paradox Body Jewellery, so that our team can assess the condition of your piercing and provide you with appropriate upgrades that will fit correctly.
True infection of piercings is possible, but rare. Symptoms of an infected piercing include a thick, green/yellowish discharge (different to the usual clear/pale yellow fluid that forms around a healing piercing), often accompanied by a strong odour, excessive swelling, and the area feeling hot to the touch. There are many factors that may be affecting your piercing, such as sleep, diet, hormones and stress, improper jewellery and aftercare; if you are unsure if your piercing is infected, please come in and speak to a team member who can assess and advise you to contact your GP if necessary.
Providing you have booked enough time for your appointment, you may have up to 3 or 4 piercings done in one sitting. Please be aware that this is at the discretion of the piercer and depends on several factors such as your chosen piercings and general health and wellbeing.
For most piercings, you are looking at about 2 months for the initial healing process; this is where you will experience majority of swelling, discomfort and discharge around the piercing site. Soft tissue piercings (e.g. earlobes, lip, nose) will generally take 2-6 months to fully heal, whereas anything going through hard cartilage (most ear piercings that aren’t lobes), as well as nipple, navel etc can often take up to a year to fully settle down. Please note that these timeframes are just guidelines and that healing times differ from person to person.
You can see the age restriction for each piercing on our Price List page.
You cannot get a new piercing whilst pregnant of breastfeeding. This is because whilst you are pregnant, your body is directing much of its energy into growing your baby; this means that you may be at higher risk of complications and infections which can be passed onto your baby in utero. The same applies for breastfeeding – your body is working so hard to produce milk that your immunities may drop and you may be more susceptible to complications during healing. Additionally, hormonal fluctuations during pregnancy and breastfeeding can wreak havoc on piercings that were previously fully healed for years, meaning that fresh piercings often wouldn’t stand a chance of healing successfully.
We do not use any numbing cream for our piercings – adrenaline is the only numbing you need!
You should not touch the piercing unless you are performing your aftercare routine and wash your hands before touching. Do not play with oral piercings as this can delay healing and cause damage to teeth and gums. Avoid anything alcohol-based (e.g. surgical spirits) as these can dry our delicate healing skin, and avoid oils (e.g. tea tree, lavender) as these can suffocate the piercing. Do not use cotton buds as the fibres tend to wrap around the jewellery, causing irritation. Do not switch out your starter jewellery until you are past the initial healing period (approx. 6-8 weeks), and do not pick at the build-up around the piercing during the day.
Here at Metal Fatigue, consent is incredibly important to us. It is crucial to us that anyone getting pierced actively wants to get pierced; with this, they must be able to understand the risks and implications of getting pierced, as well as being able to fully comprehend the aftercare instructions and be able to take responsibility for and carry out the cleaning routine themselves.
Metal Fatigue Professional Body Piercing
Bournemouth’s only dedicated body piercing clinic, Metal Fatigue has over 20 years of piercing experience.
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