Ear Piercing

Many teenagers or young girls like to have their ears pierced. Most earrings today are available for pierced ears. If you have very small earlobes you may want to think about how an earring will look before you have it done. After you have your ears pierced, you must wash the area with soap daily and use isopropyl alcohol on both sides of the ear at least twice a day. It is also a good idea to use an antibiotic ointment every night for the first week. This is available over-the-counter at most drug stores or supermarkets. A triple antibiotic is preferred, but Bacitracin ointment will also work. These are available in a generic brand which works as well as the more expensive brand names.

You should start by wearing only gold earrings first. Some people will find they are allergic to any other metal. Rotate the earrings at least twice a day to keep the holes free from scabbing. You must not removed the earrings for at least three to four weeks until the skin is healed. During the first year you should wear earrings most of the time to keep the holes from closing. Newly pieced ears will close up quickly at first if you do remove your earrings.

Do not wear dangling earrings while playing sports. They can get caught on clothing or in your hair very easily and can actually tear the earlobe.

If you pierce other parts of your ear, keep in mind that other areas besides the earlobe will take longer to heal, will be more painful, and will not close up as easily or may never close at all.