Category: Education

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Do I need to Research my Piercer?

So, you’ve decided to get a piercing! Whether it be a classic nose piercing, a large gauge piercing or intimate work you should always research your piercer and/or piercing studio. This is to make sure that they are the right fit for you as a client and that they can provide the work you are looking for at a higher quality level. Your piercer should be able to demonstrate their knowledge and skills to a strong standard that can gain your trust and ensure their credibility. But how do you research your piercer, what should you be looking for? It can be a really overwhelming task if you’re not entirely sure what to look for, which is why I’ve put together this guid for you to use and share.

This is mainly based for the UK, so may be slightly inaccurate across different countries, due to their own laws and regulations surrounding body piercing. This is only meant to be a guide, and it is encouraged that you do your own research for things that may differ in your local region.

  • Education – Your piercer should be able to demonstrate and show off their knowledge and skills and the education they have and are continuing to ensure they are providing the best quality service they can. You may look for certificates on the wall of conferences and classes they have attended, as well as first aid training. They may be showing off their education and own research through social media posts or blogs on their websites, they may even talk about it in the studio with you. You can ask about their training and education too!
Aiden’s wall of certificates from attending and speaking at conferences across the world.
  • Hygiene – Hygiene is such a huge factor when it comes to body piercing. There should be no drinking alcohol or smoking encouraged or practiced inside the studio, and clients should never be permitted to ‘try on’ jewellery. (A safe alternative you may find is piercers using ‘piercing sticks’ or tools to hold up jewellery near the clients skin.) The piercing itself should be performed in a separate room that allows for good ventilation and good lighting. A private bathroom should also be away from any jewellery handling or processing. Some studios (if they aren’t disposable) should have a separate room that isn’t accessible by the general public where they process and clean dirty tools (this is referred to as the sterilisation room). On top of the big things, the studio should look clean and organised when you walk in, hand sanitizer should be freely available, you may notice cleaning wipes/spray tucked away on shelving or cupboards. Hand-washing will be practiced and encouraged between each appointment, as well as cleaning down the room.
  • Sterilisation – All jewellery and tools should be completely sterilised for the appointment. Some piercers may choose to do this via pre-sterilising in pouches. When sterilised correctly their should be a colour indicator on the back, as well as the packet looking crinkled. These should be opened in your Prescence. Other pierces choose to sterilise everything at the time of the appointment via the statim. They will place the jewellery, gauze, and tools (such as needles) into a statim cassette and leave it to sterilise (this typically takes around 7-9 minutes). To prove the sterility of the items inside, a colour changing indicator should be in their to verify, which you can ask your piercer to see. Again, these cassettes should be open in your presence.
A steriliser strip atop of the statim.
  • Contaminated Waste – There should be at least two separate bins in the piercing room. One bin (that can be operated without hands, such as a push-pedal bin) that collects contaminated waste, such as aprons or gloves. The other one is a sharps container that is mounted on the wall. Both of these should be clearly labelled ‘biohazard’. The sharps been is similar to the ones you may see in a doctors office or in the hospital. It is important that there is a sharps been so that you can be certain that needles are being disposed of correctly, and aren’t being reused.
  • Licenses and Insurance – Each individual piercer and studio should have their own licence by the council (where applicable) that allows them to practice body piercing. Each studio will also have insurance that will protect them and you. (Insurances can differ from each company, which is why some studios may have different parameters to work under and may be insured for different things.) Please note that neither a license or insurance can guarantee that the piercer has had adequate trainer, you should check with your local department what their regulations are.
  • Aftercare – Aftercare instructions should be provided to you at each and every appointment, as well as easily accessible via their website. You may find that each studio’s aftercare may differ slightly, but they should still follow the most up-to-date guidelines. A good base to find appropriate aftercare and what to compare it to is the aftercare suggestions written out by the APP.
Rogues aftercare leaflets.
  • Single Use Needles – Every piercer will use a single needle for each piercing they perform on a client. These needles will never be re-used, especially amongst different clients. Piercing guns will also never be offered, suggested or even held by a quality piercer for any piercing.
  • Portfolio – Each piercer will have their own portfolio. In the modern day of technology, you easily find this via their social media pages, or websites. They may also have more private portfolio work that you can ask to see. It is important when vetting a piercer that you check their portfolio, especially if you are looking for specialist work, such as large gauge or intimate piercings. Keep your eyes out for their healed work too!
  • Jewellery – All jewellery should be of high quality, that is well polished with no external threads (such as threadless or internally threaded). There should also be a wide selection of jewellery available which will ensure a correct fit, and is suitable for an initial/healing piercing.
  • Age Requirements – Age requirements will differ for each studio, based on personal opinion and insurance, as well as legislation. No quality studio will be offering to pierce nipples or genital work to anybody under the age of 18 regardless of gender. Quality studios will also have a strict ID policy for all clients, and for underage clients the legal guardian will also be required to be present at the appointment.

These are some of the minimum standards you should be looking for when you research a piercer or piercing studio. As a bonus they may also have membership to either (or both) the APP/UKAPP. A membership to either of these organisations doesn’t mean that they will be perfect, or provide quality work. It means that they are working to a minimum standard that has been set up to ensure that standards of body piercing are improving. These includes things like (but not limited to) being first aid trained, having blood borne pathogen training, certain hygiene standards etc. You should be able to reach out to your piercer and ask questions about their practices and studio standards. Your piercer should gain your trust and make you feel safe and secure during your appointment. If there is something not quite right about a situation, and you aren’t 100%, maybe have another rethink before getting pierced! Always trust your gut and the facts from your own research.

At Rogue each member of the team has their own portfolio which you can see via our social media as well as having their own Instagram work accounts. You can also contact us to see more of our portfolio’s or if you have any questions about our standards. We also post a new blog weekly at 4pm on Friday which you can read.

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Is it safe?

Unfortunately, it is way too common in the UK to be able to walk into a piercing shop and have no idea what jewellery or metal you are being pierced with, how it works or is fitted, and if it is even safe to be worn permanently or even long term. Quite often at the piercing appointment at Rogue, we hear multiple variations of ‘so what jewellery can I wear today?” Typically, the client might mean: What is safe? What can I not wear? What in the cabinets should I avoid until my piercing is healed? And honestly, you are right in asking that question!

4x Neometal Flowers

Any good piercing studio should be able to answer your questions about the jewellery they stock and why or why not it is suitable for initial use! For example, you may take a look in our titanium cabinet and as about the sparkly white flower. In response we can tell you:

“That is the Neometal Flower! It is made out of implant grade titanium, ASTFM-136 to be exact, which is the exact same grade they use for fake knees and hips. Therefore we know it is safe to be worn in the body for extended periods of time. It is also set with five genuine white Swarovski crystals, so they can keep that sparkle forever, with care and frequent but gentle cleaning. All of our jewellery comes with warranty against any manufacturer defects, so if one gemstone randomly falls out, you can bring it back into the studio so we can have it cleaned and fixed by the jewellery company.”

-Jay

This is all true! All of our jewellery comes with a warranty against any manufacturer defects. Unfortunately, not everything in life is 100% perfect, and this includes the jewellery we have in stock. Despite it being rare that pieces to break, it does happen. This is why we choose to work with companies that will accept responsibility for their mistakes, such as a loose setting, and help us fix that. They care about their clients the same way we do, and we want to provide you with an experience that is as good as possible.

All of our jewellery is completely certified and is 100% safe to be worn in the body for extended periods of time! (Gemma has once or twice said, you can be buried with them!) All of our jewellery meets the standards set out by both the UKAPP and the APP! And for all of our implant grade titanium, each of our manufacturers can also provide Mill Certificates!

Nearly every piece of jewellery we hold in stock we can use for initial piercing. There are of course a few exception!
1. Clicker and seam rings – We will never use clickers or seam rings in any initial piercing. The rotation will often irritate the open channel, and often because they involve a tiny gap can bring dirt and debris into the healing wound. Quite often these rings will be quite small in diameter, meaning there won’t be enough room for drainage. You can learn more about this here!
2. Chains and charms – When healing a new piercing there is often quite a lot of fluid that will drain from the piercing channel, this can then easily become built up around the jewellery. With chains and charms this can get stuck in-between the small gaps, meaning the jewellery cannot be adequately cleaned.
3. Genuine opals – Throughout our BVLA jewellery collection, we have one or two piercings of genuine opal which cannot be sterilised. This is because opals contain a high rate of water, and under extreme pressure and steam from the statim this can cause the piece to explode. Because they can’t be sterilised, this makes it unsuitable for initial use. However, we have lots of faux opals available for you!

BVLA Mini Kandy
14k yellow Gold
Genuine White Opal

Every member of the team at Rogue has a vast knowledge of our jewellery collection, and can tell you about each of our cabinets, the manufacturers and brands we use, as well as the individual pieces. They take class after class at different conferences across the world to ensure they are provide a safe and confident service to their best of their ability. These classes include safe and unsafe metals. Aiden himself (our head piercer) actually teaches his metal classes at some conferences, so you can place your trust that we are providing you the best quality jewellery we can.

Everything in our jewellery collection that we have in store can be viewed online in our webstore! You can also book jewellery consultation appointments to have a browse and a discussion about what we have, or what we can get.

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Downsizing!

If you’ve been pierced at Rogue (or any other quality studio) you’ll often be told to come back in for a check-up and a downsize. But what is a downsize, and why is it so important?

Downsizing is shortening the length of your jewellery to make a nice snug and comfortable fit to your body. When we pierce you we always start with bigger jewellery, either longer in length or bigger in diameter. this is because during the first stage of healing, the piercing site will swell as a normal reaction to the wound we have created. We need to accommodate for this swell, thus meaning bigger/longer jewellery. (If you are interested in why we swell and the phases of healing check out this blog post.)

A fresh mid-helix piercing with ample room for swelling.

Why don’t we pierce with the short bar? Again it cycles back to the swelling. Without adequate room for the swelling, it can quickly become a problem. Often if there’s no room, the body will start to swell over the jewellery, which can cause it to be embedded or lost. This can quite often be very sore and painful. Depending on the severity of the swelling, we can pull the jewellery and replace it with a bigger pierce, or in very rare/severe circumstances we may have to refer you to urgent care.

A triple flat piercing embedded.
The middle pierce of jewellery is starting to be ‘swallowed’.

How do we downsize? Downsizing is fairly easy. We don’t cut the jewellery down, and we don’t replace the entire piece. We just replace the wearable with something much comfier. For example: take a helix piercing, the swelling has come down and now it’s starting to move freely. We simply just remove the decorative end, take out the labret, fit a smaller labret, and put the end back on. Abracadabra its just that easy! For piercings with rings (such as a daith) we will simply just replace the ring for one with a smaller diameter!

When should I downsize? This varies for each piercing, but ultimately your piercer should let you know. However, for most oral piercings it will be between 7-14 days. Cartilage and other piercings (such as navels/nipples/eyebrows etc) it will be around 4-6 weeks. Intimate piercings can be either, depending on location!

How do I know if I’m ready to downsize? Typically the jewellery will start to feel and look longer. You may notice that it also starts to move around more freely by itself. Sometimes you may see that the jewellery is sticking up and out, or that it is getting caught more easily on clothes/hair/glasses. The best way to tell is definitely to pop in for a visit with your piercer! They’ll be able to assess it from all angles and swap that bar over for you.

Plenty of space = Downsize to smaller bar!

What happens if I don’t downsize? Now it’s not going to be the end of the world if you do not downsize your jewellery, and your ear or nose won’t fall off! However, once the swelling subsides and the fistula is less tight, the jewellery may start moving up and down or back and forth. This can cause irritation to a sensitive and healing channel, which may lead to irritation bumps and higher chances of knocks and snags. Over time, this can even create migration and rejection as well as wonky angles. Depending on the severity of the damage, this may result in you having to retire the piercing.

For oral piercings, such as tongues or labrets, you can cause serious teeth and gum damage with excess length in jewellery.

How many downsizes will I need? Well this depends on quite a few factors. For example, which piercing is it? Cheek piercings require multiple downsizes due to the rapid swell of the area, and how slow it returns back to normal. If you tend to be a ‘sweller’ you may require 2 downsizes for piercings such as a nose or helix, as you may need a ‘half-way’ size. Gaining or losing weight may also mean you might need to shorten or lengthen the jewellery, Certain medications, being ill, being in warmer climates can all effect how the piercing heals, swells, and settles, so it is never a definitive answer.

Sometimes you may not even need a downsize. Some piercings just don’t need it. For example, microdermals! Rook and daith piercings are definitely a choice, the aesthetic of these is often the longer curved bar, or the larger ring to show off decoration. Other piercings can be variable, such as nipple or industrial piercings. However, it is important to note that most piercings will need to be downsized.

A stunning fresh daith piercing – pierced with the desired jewellery, and no downsize is needed!

So there you have it! What is downsizing, why it is important and all things in between! If you think your piercing is ready for a downsize, book in for a check-up with us here! If you’re not local to Nottingham, check out the piercer map to find your closest UKAPP piercer to help assist you, or reach out to us for recommendations!

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The Adrenaline Response

The adrenaline response, also known the ‘fight or flight’ response, is a hormone (adrenaline) release from the adrenal glands in response to stressful or dangerous situations. This release of adrenalin gives us a boost to act quickly. It can also cause feelings of distress, anxiety and feeling unwell. The aim of this release is to help you face dangerous situations and be ready to “fight or flight”.

How does it affect piercing?

When preparing for your appointment, and actually waiting to get pierced, a lot of people can be worried or anxious thinking about the pain, especially when you don’t know what to expect. The adrenaline response can be triggered by these thoughts of anxiety or stress in response to physical harm of the body (even though we decided to do this, these thoughts are completely normal and valid). This response often has physical presenting symptoms on the body, including.

A diagram showing the reactions and symptoms of the adrenalin release.
https://www.sfh-tr.nhs.uk/media/3782/fight_or_flight_and_relaxed_breathing.pdf

In this situation though, the release of adrenalin isn’t always helpful! Running away (fight) won’t necessarily help, and we definitely don’t recommend trying to fight your piercer! So we implement techniques during your time with us to help manage these symptoms. First of all, we learn what the signs and symptoms can be (see above diagram) and figure out the best way to help you. We have sweets on hand to help with blood sugars, as well as cool water and compresses on hand to help with body temperature. We also help prepare you for the piercing by focusing on breathing techniques. We get you to focus on the ‘in and out’ of breathing, slowing it down, and releasing on the ‘push’ of the needle. By doing this, we can shift the focus from the anxiety, and help ‘rebalance’ the amount of oxygen and carbon dioxide we might have from the temporary imbalance we might have caused from shallower breathing.

Even though these feelings can be scary and unpleasant, they are not dangerous. You are also in the hands of safe professionals who are prepared for all of this! And despite how cool you may think your piercer is, we still get nervous too! Yes, even when we get pierced!

So why do I feel weird after the piercing?

This is the adrenaline rush to help you manage the pain. Because your body senses a heightened emotion, your adrenal glands create a quick release of adrenaline into your bloodstream to help manage the pain you are feeling. It is your own body’s way of creating it’s own distraction technique from the pain and sensations you are feeling by increasing mental stimulation. The adrenaline also dampens the pain response in your nervous system so you won’t get slowed down by your injuries (the fight or flight response!).

It’s not just fear and pain that can spike your adrenaline, it can also be excitement! For example, some people enjoy dangerous sports or rollercoasters because of the ‘thrill’ they get from it. This thrill is the adrenaline surging through your body, despite not being in danger. This can happen in piercing too. The excitement of being pierced or getting pierced can easily trigger this response. (This happened to Jay after their cheek piercings!)

It’s not always super fun though. Sometimes you may get light headed or dizzy, and feel a sense of irritability. This ‘rush’ can sometimes be stressful for some clients. As always, your piercer should be on hand and prepared for all outcomes! For example, everyone at Rogue is first aid trained, so if you do feel lightheaded or dizzy, let your piercer know! Often we will elevate your legs to bring the blood back to your head steadily, and grab you some sweets to bring your blood sugars back up! Sometimes you might just need a glass of water.

Why do I sometimes feel ‘bad’ later on?

After your piercing you may feel like you are invincible or on top of the world, this is super normal, however over the next few hours the body will slowly start to return to normal after the surge from the hormonal release. The adrenaline surge can last up to an hour, as it returns back to normal levels you may feel a ‘comedown’ effect. These symptoms can include low levels of energy or tiredness, as well as a drop in mood (also known as ‘post-adrenalin’ blues). There is absolutely nothing to worry about! We recommend doing something that you find helpful in terms of self care. Whether this is getting super cosy on the sofa with snacks and watching movies by yourself, or hanging out with friends, it is super important to look after yourself. We also recommend grabbing some good food, and something full of sugar (such as a full fat Coca-Cola) however you should avoid over-consumption on caffeine as this can increase the adrenaline in your body.

Breo showing off one of our sweet jars!

The adrenaline response is nothing to be scared about. It is a natural reaction that the body has been using to protect itself for thousands of years, and it is rare we see ‘bad’ reactions to the adrenaline response from piercings. However, if you are feeling super nervous our team are always on hand to help you out and make you feel better!

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Fainting At Your Appointment.

Quite often we hear the words, ‘I’m a fainter’ by clients when they come and get pierced with us, which can make the experience much more daunting and scarier than it needs to be. It can also be a scary idea for anyone who has never fainted before, but may have never had a piercing, or is quite queasy anyway! But there’s nothing to be worried about! While fainting can be quite common, and any professional piercer should be equipped to handle it, it really doesn’t happen as often as you think it might. But let’s discuss fainting, what it is, why it happens, and how we (at Rogue) minimise the chances of it happening to you!

https://www.osmosis.org/learn/Cerebral_circulation

Fainting is a short-term loss of consciousness. It happens because of a sudden drop in blood flow to your brain. A fainting episode usually lasts a few seconds or minutes. Then, you wake up and return to normal.1 It occurs when the body over reacts to certain triggers, causing that sudden drop in blood pressure and heart rate, making the blood flow to the brain slow down. These triggers can include (but are not limited to), standing or sitting for a long time, dehydration or extreme heat, stressful or emotional situations, and seeing blood or having an injection.

At your appointment, some of these things can be tied altogether! For example, it is very common for some people to be nervous about the pain or the procedure, which can cause feelings of anxiety causing stress levels to rise. Depending on your piercer, and the piercing you’re having, you may be sat or laid down for your piercing, so if you stand to quickly it can cause you to feel lightheaded or faint. You may not have had food before getting pierced, or not enough food, so during the piercing your blood sugar might be low, and then it can drop further due to the adrenalin response after being pierced. However, it is still very rare for us to have a fainter in the studio!

When you put a number of these factors together, and very quickly, it drastically increases your chances of feeling faint, or passing out, which is why we have a number of procedures to minimise this as much as possible.

  1. Eating! On our consent form we ask if you have eaten in the last 4 hours prior to your appointment. Having a healthy amount of food in your system can stable your blood sugar and prepare it for the drop in blood sugar once the adrenalin response happens. If you have not eaten, we have a variety of snacks and sweets on hand that we will ask you to eat before you go onto the room. We also have sweets for after the appointment to give you that litlle boost of sugar back!
  2. Lying you down! For most piercings at Rogue, we will have you laid down. This means that if the blood flow to your head slows down, it has less fight against gravity. And if you do feel faint, it is easier to bring your legs above your head laid down, than stood up or sat down!
  3. Breathing techniques! When getting pierced at Rogue, we will get you to focus on your breathing, keeping it nice and steady, and taking breaths in and out to alleviate the pain on the ‘push’ of the needle. But alongside managing pain, breathing techniques are a really great grounding technique and can help reduce stress and anxiety before the hard bit.
  4. Focusing on you! As the piercer and the person ‘in control’ of the room, it is really important that all of our attention is on you, even if you don’t notice it, we are always watching you and your reactions to pick up on any warning signals that you may feel faint. These signs can include going pale, or sweaty. If we pick up on it early enough, we can typically help you out by giving you some water and or sweets, a cool compress if needed.

Despite everything we can try and do to prevent fainting, it can definitely still happens. But there is still absolutely no need to worry. Every member of Rogue is First Aid trained, and we take annual courses to keep up to date with any changes. We have sweets and water on hand for when you come round, and we’ll always stay with you for a small time to make sure you’re feeling back to normal (or as much as possible) before you leave the studio. If you are prone to fainting, just let your piercer know, that way we can be as prepared as possible beforehand!

Feel free to book an appointment with us, and we’ll make you feel as comfortable as we can!

  1. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/symptoms/21699-fainting
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Piercings and Lifestyle!

Often when we get a piercing, we don’t think too much of the complications. Piercings are quite typically seen as ‘just a piercing’ and not a lot of thought or care is put into the upkeep of trying to heal a piercing. But anyone who has had an irritation bump will know that piercings are not easy to heal, and require a lot of our time, effort and energy. They are also incredibly responsive to our environment, which is often why we may need to consider our lifestyle in relation to the piercing we are getting.

I’m going to break up our aftercare’s 3 main rules and some examples of lifestyle choice (or lifestyle influences that aren’t necessarily choices) that might influence the heal of your piercing.

1. Keep it Clean!

Keep it clean by cleaning twice a day with a sterile saline solution and general shower hygiene is the routine that we recommend you stick to in terms of actively cleaning your piercings after everyday movement. This help remove any casual dirt, grime, sweat, and crusties that have built up overnight or during the day.

But for some people, they may need to think about what they are up to during their everyday life. For example, if you are working in a job where there is an extraordinary amount of ‘dirt’ ‘mud’ ‘debris’ etc, you may want to consider if a piercing is for you. For example, working in career fields such as oil rigs, mining, construction, plumbing, farming, can leave you covered in insulation, wood chips/dust, contaminated water, faeces, and lots of other things you might not have thought about. Getting dirt in your piercings can cause serious irritation and infection, which is a good reason not to get the piercing for some people. However, that doesn’t mean it’s impossible. We can start slow and steady, doing one piercing at a time. We may recommend an extra clean during the day, or finding something to protect the site, such as PPE. We want to work with you to heal piercings where possible, so we rely on communication from both us and yourselves to ensure the best heal, and to fix any arising issues.

Neilmed Sterile Saline Solution

2. Keep it dry!

Avoid soaking and submerging for an absolute minimum of 6 weeks, no swimming and bathing in bathtubs!
Have you got a holiday booked that involves a swimming pool, the ocean or a hot tub? Have you got swimming sessions booked with school or in general? Maybe now isn’t the best time to get that piercings. Pools of water are really great at harbouring bacteria and micro-organisms, which is not great for a fresh and healing piercing (or tattoo, or wound!). If your lifestyle is revolved around swimming, but you are adamant on having a new piercing, you need to be able to commit to a 6 week break, and be thorough with the cleaning and drying appropriately after.

Alongside water being a great harbour point for bacteria, there is also mixture of chemicals, such as chlorine and bromine, which can be incredibly harsh and damaging to fresh piercing sites. These are two very drying chemicals which can also be incredibly hard to remove from the jewellery. This can lead to really pesky irritation bumps which can be a pain to get rid of.

Did you know that a single litre of pool or sea water can contain up to 1 million bacterial cells?

3. Leave it alone!

No touching, twisting, turning or fiddling with the jewellery. And definitely do not remove the jewellery, for an absolute minimum of 3 months (unless you plan to retire it of course).

If you have a job, or are in a school, which will ask you to remove your piercings, maybe adding an additional new one isn’t worth it. Removing jewellery in the initial stages of healing can cause trauma and irritation alongside introducing bacteria into a healing wound which can cause an infection. Depending on how long the jewellery is left out, the piercing channel can shrink (which requires a slight stretch to re-insert the jewellery) or it can close completely.

You may also want to consider your clothing choices. For example, if you are a person who wears a binder, having nipple piercings may not be the best course of action. The extreme tightness and pressure from the binder can cause excessive pressure on a piercing, resulting in irritation, migration and or rejection. This is incredibly similar to navel piercings and high waisted clothing. For navel piercings you need to avoid wearing any clothes that will create pressure around the piercing site, we normally recommend bottoms such as low waisted jeans and dresses, or things like leggings where the waistband can be folded over.

In ear objects! Headphones, stethoscopes, ear plugs, hearing aids, all objects that go inside your ears can be really aggravating for certain piercings. Daiths, Conch’s, Tragus’s and even Rook piercings can all be affected during the early healing stage (especially with the longer posts) due to the constant insertion and removal of the item risking knocks and snags. They can also cause additional pressure on the jewellery which in turn irritates the piercing channel. Excess pressure and irritation may result in bad angles, migration, rejection or retiring the piercing.

Stop Touching!

If you are unsure if your lifestyle would work with a piercing, feel free to send us an Instagram message, call us, or book a consultation for an in depth chat!

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Piercings for Gender Euphoria.

Before I start this blog post, I must state that as of writing, I am a 22 year old, femme-presenting/afab non-binary person who recognises her state of privilege, and lack of first hand experience and knowledge surrounding those who are seeking gender euphoric practices. Despite identifying as non-binary, I have personally never used piercings for ‘gender euphoria’, but definitely have used them in aid to find love in my body more.

This is why I have reached out to clients, and piercers first hand for their own experience that they are willing to share. This blog is intended to share peoples own experiences about being pierced to aid in their gender euphoria, and to provide more information to those out there.

Agender but transmasculine (he/him)

I have loads of piercings! 10 facial, 3 ear, both nipples and dukes – originally they were just a form of expression and I didn’t understand why they meant so much to me, but after transitioning, getting piercings really started to have a whole new meaning for me ! A lot of them enhance features that are already there that I find euphoric (for example, my eyebrow piercings highlighting my monobrow and my dukes highlighting my bottom growth) – since my experience getting vch/dukes, I’ve found them to be so gender affirming that I absolutely plan to get more genital piercings eventually!

My biggest advice to others looking for this is to go to a trans/trans friendly piercer that understands how much it’ll mean for you, especially if it’s a more intimate piercing! The experience of getting the piercing often really affects my feelings on it, especially with something as person as a gender affirming piercing, so it’s definitely worth finding someone that makes you feel comfortable and welcome! 🙂

Cove, 19
Healed Facial Piercings.

Hi I’m genderfluid, and use the pronouns he/they/it. The affirming piercings I currently have are my bridge, septum, and an eyebrow.

Facial piercings have helped me with gender euphoria, as they help to make my face look more androgynous, by covering/hiding more feminine aspects, and accentuating more neutral and masculine aspects. My bridge and septum help to draw more attention to my nose, and away from more feminine areas of my face, such as my lips and cheeks, and my eyebrow helps to make my brows look thicker and fuller.

The only negative effect I can think of, is having a strong emotional attachment to my piercings, as I don’t feel or look like myself without them, which can cause distress if I need to remove them.

I plan on getting my other eyebrow (I need symmetry), cheek piercings (as this will help to make my face appear slimmer) and lip piercings with hoops to almost hide them, making them look less feminine.

My advice for anyone looking to get affirming piercings, is to go to a reputable piercer and do your research. I had dahlia bites done and had to remove them as they weren’t pierced correctly and it crushed me. So trust me, the extra £15 is worth it!

Onyx, 19
  • Stretched Lobes
  • Septum, Bridge, Eyebrow

I’m a trans masc nonbinary lesbian! my pronouns are he/they. I currently have 19 piercings, but my paired eyebrows that I got a year ago have definitely been the best for gender euphoria! I love the way they emphasise my brow bone and make me look more masculine, as well as balancing out my face because I have a lot of piercings from the nose down. I’m currently thinking of getting my bridge redone, as I think this would draw more attention again to my facial structure. To anyone thinking of getting masc gender affirming piercings- do it! My facial dysphoria immediately improved when I got my eyebrows pierced. I love them!

Juno, 22

Transmasculine, he/whatever.

I got diagonal nipple piercings last December, and it’s honestly been so good for the old gender. Before I had them I looked at my chest and it was just like “gross, still got tits”, but now I get to look at them and see sick-ass shiny bars! I’m now much less uncomfortable seeing my chest because there’s something else to focus on that’s not dislike of my body.

It was the same for my navel piercing, giving much less focus to my hips and ‘feminine’ stomach and instead just heh nice shiny blue bar. Funny enough, the colour also plays into it. Sounds a bit silly but switching from plain titanium to anodised dark blue pieces has actually made me love my piercings even more – perhaps a bit juvenile to be all blue is for boys, but it helps.

This one is a bit mad, but I used to have earlobe dysphoria. Honest to god I felt that my lobes were too small and feminine. Stretching them has completely nuked that, and I now love how my ears look! Stretching my septum has also made me love how my face looks, I think the chunky blue ring in the middle really ties everything together in a masculine way. I’m excited to get more piercings, planning a stacked labret in the next few weeks!

I’ve just started T and am planning to get a triangle piercing and perhaps a few labia’s once bottom growth has slowed down. I love the way genital piercing looks and am excited to find out how it feels! I’ve always been somewhat uncomfortable during sex due to the whole trans thing, and I think genital piercings would help with that – having a less conventionally gendered vulva with bottom growth and piercings would help make it feel less like a Female Part and more just my body.

Any advice for other folks looking for gender affirming piercings: play around with different jewellery styles! Piercings are so customisable, you can tailor them to any version of your own masculinity or femininity. Also – nipple piercings do not hurt as much as everyone said they would.

Fletch, 19
Healed Nipple and Navel Piercings

My name’s Sin; I’m 30 and I’m nonbinary. I have a lot of piercings for a lot of reasons, but rather than talk about gender affirming genital work, or nipple piercings to help make my body more bearable whilst I wait for top surgery, I feel like you feel my gender euphoria most in my face. As much as the aforementioned are helpful, I’ve never felt more connected to myself than I do when I make that bold decision to change the part of me I turn toward the rest of the world.

I don’t like my face, but it’s mine. I’ve always had it and I always will. Even with surgery, with HRT, there’s always going to be my face under it, and people will always read it one way or another; masculine or feminine features, “harsh” features or “soft” features, boy or girl, whatever box the observer wants to put me in. But my modifications aren’t anything. They don’t belong to one category or another. They’re not a “male” or “female” feature. They’re not human, and I love that. Every new piercing is another step away from the expected presentation of either gender, into a new space occupied by neither, a space uniquely mine.

I’m a visual eunuch; something not quite both, but impossible to divorce completely from the concept of an “either”. In a body that never felt like mine, every new wound makes me a little more present. In the negative spaces I’ve made and filled in with gold, I’ve found myself; I am the most myself in the places in between, in the parts of myself that I enacted my own divine right to create or destroy or adorn.

I’ll continue adding piercings, and other modifications until I no longer feel a sense of “absence”. I’d like to expand on more directly affirming piercings like genital work as I explore HRT. However, with that, I’d say it’s important not to just consider that something is affirming because it is aligned to the presentation you identify most closely with, but sometimes that affirmation comes from the simple act of recognising your own ability to enact change. Body modifications are way to chip your own vision out of the flesh we’re all born into; it’s not about what “should” belong to a specific gender ideal, but about what makes you feel empowered in your own skin. Gender presentation is as multi-faceted and beautiful as the gemstones we fill ourselves with; it’s worth exploring.

Sin, 30

-Madelyn MacPherson(She/Her) 26, Ontario, Canada

Before I came out as transgender, the only piercings I had were my stretched lobes, and a septum ring. I had known I was trans for years, but was so scared to come out, until I heard I song I had heard many times before, but the lyrics “I need to be myself, because it so lonely in the eyes of someone else” hit me in a way they had never hit before. At that moment I knew I had to come out

A few months after coming out, I met my family at  @goldenelectrictattoo . That is when my piercing journey began.

The first piercing I got made me realize how gender affirming getting pierced is for me was my paired nose piercings. How beautiful I felt looking at myself with them in after fighting for so long to see the woman I am in the mirror, it was one of the most gender euphoric feelings I’ve ever experienced.

Since then, I’ve had pierced my high nostrils, mantis, bridge, paired centre eyebrows, third eye dermal, vertical labret, angel fangs, smiley, both nipples, surface tragus on both sides, and my conches punched at a 4 gauge.

Every last one of those piercings made me feel more beautiful than the last, more feminine, and more willing to learn to love myself. Every time I struggle to see the woman I am today stare back in the mirror, I see my beautiful adornments all given to me by amazing friends, and remind myself of the beauty I carry inside and out

Being trans is a lot like getting pierced in a way. It’s a lot of pain all at once, but once it heals, you feel beautiful .

-Madelyn, 26

Gender/pronoun preference: she/her, trans woman

Piercings you got and why: helix x3, industrial, nostril, septum, vertical labret, nipples, 16mm stretched lobes 

How this has helped with gender euphoria: I’ve made my body my own, in the way I want. I was insecure about my nose size, but my nose piercings have really helped with that. I wanted my nipples pierced for  ages, and was glad when my endocrinologist gave me the go-ahead after a couple of years of hrt! They’ve also helped my body feel uniquely mine. 

Any positive/negative effects from the piercing: I’m far more confident and comfortable going out! But sometimes I catch my nipple piercings in the shower 🙁 

If you are considering anymore affirming piercings and why: not at the moment! 

Any advice for other folks looking for gender affirming piercings: do it. Ignore what anyone else says, your body is yours and only yours, so do what you like to make it a body you’re proud of! 

Abigail, 23

My name is Tobias and I’m 19 (nearly 20!) years old and trans masc. I go by he/him pronouns and have been on testosterone for a year and a half. I have a lot of piercings (22 currently!) and some of them have definitely helped me with dysphoria and made me more comfortable in my own skin. 

I didn’t get a septum piercing intending for it to help with dysphoria, but right now my septum is stretched to 4mm and the chunkier jewellery definitely helps with a more masculine look/feel. It’s a big chunky piece and sort of the focal point of my facial piercings, meaning that my philtrum piercing (which I would consider more feminine, but that’s just me) doesn’t particularly stick out as much as it would without it. It means I can get more facial piercings that I want without worrying about them making me look too feminine.

I also have a large-gauge VCH piercing which was absolutely wonderful for dysphoria. I got it a few weeks after I started taking testosterone and have since stretched it to a large gauge than it was initially pierced at (3.2mm at the moment I believe). Genital piercings are absolutely wonderful for dysphoria especially since I haven’t had any surgery, and it only gets better when testosterone starts to work its magic and you get bottom growth. 

In regard to other affirming piercings, I’m looking at paired labia piercings and nipple piercings (post-top surgery, if eligible). I’ve heard so many good things from other trans masculine people and trans men about labia piercings and the euphoria from them. I’ve spoken to some people who’ve stretched theirs quite large and have said that they’ve helped them a lot with bottom dysphoria.

If you’re looking to get a gender-affirming piercing then I think you totally should! It’s a very personal and individual thing, so what I prefer for my expression might not be the same for another trans masc person. However, if you’re very ‘traditional’ in what you consider masculine, then I think large gauge piercings and plain/chunky ends will always work brilliantly.

Tobias, 19

It’s important that trans people are also given a voice about their experiences, rather than be overshadowed by someone who doesn’t have that first hand experience. And so I want to say a massive thank you to everyone who has been willing to share their own personal experiences for this blog post. I hope that people will find this useful and utilise it in their own journeys.

If you have any questions or are seeking support with your own journey into using piercings for gender euphoria, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us!

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Body Reclamation in Piercing

Since the beginning of time, body modifications (Body Modifications: The deliberate altering of the human anatomy or human physical appearance.) have been used as a way for people to reclaim their bodies for a multitude of reasons. Dying your hair, getting tattoos and piercings, to even more extreme modifications, such as tongue splits, are all different methods of modification used for body reclamation. This practice has been and is used in both the modern western world, and in earlier practices in the eastern world. It’s almost like an instinct to use our bodies to express and deal with heavy and distasteful emotions.

This blog does slightly touch on heavy negative emotions and abuse, which some people may find triggering.

What is Body Reclamation?

Body reclamation is about reconnecting with your body. Becoming more intimate and connected with yourself. About learning to explore who you are and gain a sense of power (or gain back that sense of power) or your self being.

This can mean different things for everyone. For some it’s about finding a sense of self and expressing themselves in ways they never could. For some it’s about re-identifying and learning to feel comfortable in the body they were born in. And for some it’s about becoming more intimate with themselves.

How does this entwine with piercing?

“Pain is not pleasant, I still don’t like it, but it is a tool, a teacher. My aim is what comes after. The head is quiet, time slows down. For a second, mind, body, and soul are perfectly aligned and connected.

That brief moment of balance.”
-Darkam Arcadia

https://www.instagram.com/p.a.i.n.project/

As a young body piercer in the UK, I have bonded over personal emotions with many of my clients. I’m a bit of a talker when i’m in the piercing room, and I quite often ask ‘so, why this piercing today?’ , the replies vary, but quite often I hear:

-“I’ve always fancied it, I’ve just never been brave enough.”
-“My ex partner never wanted me to have any, so now I’m getting everything I ever wanted.”
-“I’ve just recently had a break-up/divorce and thought I’d treat myself.”
-“I’m just having a bad time and knew this would make me feel better and relieve some emotion.”

And our clients aren’t the only ones too. I personally have quite often found getting a new piercing or tattoo can be a welcome distraction from personal hurt I’m feeling too. I also tend to find that the more people tell me to not get that piercing, or stop getting more, I go and do it with even more ambition. I hate that people think that they get to police how I choose to decorate my body. I use it as a defence mechanism to tell people ‘this is who I am’, and I love who I am with them.

For some people, using piercings and other body modifications is a way to heal through trauma, and let go of things that have been weighing them down. Some abuse survivors looking to reclaim their bodies through body piercing do it as a means of “reclaiming their bodies and body parts from memories and history of abuse”.


“Started getting piercings at 14. They’re all out now after 5 years in the military. But I’m covered in tattoos, starting at 17. Sleeve, hand, hips, back, belly. Without them I’m just a regular looking suburban white lady. With them I feel a sense of armor and protection. I’m made of rice krispies on the inside, and having an unapproachable exterior gives me a sense of protecting my vulnerability. I also do my best to not be flirty. I don’t want to draw positive sexual attention from the world at large. It gives me a sense of control over a body I haven’t always been able to protect.”
-Unknown

https://www.reddit.com/r/CPTSD/comments/lij2by/reclaiming_your_body_with_tattoos_piercings_etc/

Many transgender people use piercings as a gender affirming tool. This can be as simple as a Trans Femme client getting her first lobes done as a step into ‘womanhood’, the same way little girls get their first piercings. It can also be more intense genital work which can provide a better sense of self intimacy and belonging in their own bodies.

“I just recently got my ears pierced, for me it’s just a natural thing wanting to be more fashionable with that part of the body and feeling in line with cis-women.”

https://www.reddit.com/r/MtF/comments/alli9d/being_trans_and_getting_piercingstattoos/

People choose to get pierced for a variety of reasons, it’s not always to reclaim their bodies, but that doesn’t mean we can’t be aware of those who do. We can help make that experience a little bit better, and provide more options to further assist in their journey. Empathise and be a friend to those who need it, but don’t push boundaries when not needed.

At Rogue we always like to provide the best experience no matter your reason behind the piercing, but if you are looking for additional support we are always here to assist in that journey to self expression, identification and love. We are available 7 days a week, and offer a wide range of piercings between our 4 members of staff that cover the body head to toe. Do not hesitate to reach out for guidance.

If you have been affected by any of the topics that have been touched upon in the blog, please don’t hesitate to reach out for support.

Support for domestic abuse and violence.
Support for sexual abuse.
Support for mental health.
Support for gender dysphoria.

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The History of Vulva Piercings and the UK Law

Welcome back to the blog, and welcome to quite a complex topic! Today we are talking about the intersection between female genital piercing, female genital mutilation (FGM), the UK Government, and the formation of the UKAPP. So, first things first: Did you know that consenting intimate piercings on female clients was considered Female Genital Mutilation, and carried a potential jail term of up to 14 years?

Wait, What?

Yes! In April 2015, new UK NHS guidelines were brought into effect after months of serious pressure from the Crown Prosecution Service. These guidelines added new rules for a wide range of medical professionals who are subject to Mandatory Reporting guides. In short, this meant that professionals like Doctors, Ob Gyns, Nurses etc, would be required by law to report any observations of potentially altered vulvas. This including reporting any female adult who had consented to a western-style (modern day) body piercing as Female Genital Mutilation. This would then open up the piercer to prosecution under UK law!


https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2015/9/part/5/crossheading/female-genital-mutilation/enacted

The FGM (Female Genital Mutilation) offences were set out in the 2003 FGM Act, which were then later amended in 2015 by the Serious Crime Act. There were 4 offences set out, including “assisting a girl to mutilate her own genitals”. Self-mutilation is not an offence, but assisting someone to do so is.

“A person is guilty of an offence if it is proved that:

  • a girl has excised, infibulated or otherwise mutilated the whole or any part of her own labia majora, labia minora or clitoris, and
  • the suspect has aided, abetted, counselled or procured this.” 1

At this point you may be thinking that surely we’ve over reacted to this? There’s’ no mention of piercing! Well, if we take a look at the World Health Organisation (WHO), they broke down FGM into 4 categories, the 4th one was the one that became detrimental to female genital piercings. “Type 4: This includes all other harmful procedures to the female genitalia for non-medical purposes, e.g., pricking, piercing, incising, scraping and cauterizing the genital area.”2

Due to this, female genital piercings became illegal overnight in the UK. It was safer for piercers to stop practicing intimate piercings. This protected both them and their clients.3

When did this change?

As of current (April 2024), we are now allowed to pierce the genitals of consenting adults once again! This is down to a lot of hard work from charities and piercers across the UK lobbying the government. The UKAPP was born out of the UK Piercer Meet Up (UKPMU). The UKPMU came together because of the change in the UK law of FGM. It was in Newcastle that a group of piercers grouped an informal meet-up to discuss what was needed to protect both our industry and peoples rights.4 This was the start of the United Kingdom Association of Professional Piercers (UKAPP). And from there they helped campaign to allow adult consenting women the freedom to have the choice of piercing their own bodies.

The first UKAPP meet-up. Including our very own Aiden!

It was late 2019 (right before the pandemic) that piercers were once again allowed to pierce vulvas after the CPS released fresh guidance information. “The piercing of the female genitalia to adorn it with jewellery or other accessories purely for the purpose of personal decoration or in order to enhance the sensation of sexual contact, as commonly understood and practised, is unlikely to involve excision, infibulation or mutilation.”5 

This meant that piercing Vulva’s was not likely to cause harm or mutilation to the consenting adult, allowing piercers to once again offer this wonderful service. And for that we can thank the tireless work of piercers, including the UKAPP and especially Lola Slider. Lola Slider (of Forest Piercing in Glasgow) was a massive voice and driving force behind the legislative change. Around the time of this change, Lola was the UKAPP president, and before then was nominated as Medical Liaison, and honestly did some amazing work during her time on the organisations board.

What happens now?

Despite the fact we now have the green light from the UK government to offer these services once again, doesn’t mean there isn’t limitations involved. Some local councils still refuse to allow studios to offer intimate piercings, and some have by-laws that will effect the process. This means that depending where in the country you get pierced, the appointment may look different or follow a different procedure.

For example: At Rogue, each client looking for intimate work has to have an intimate consultation a minimum of 24 hours before they get piercing. At this appointment, one of our piercers will thoroughly discuss with you the history of intimate piercings and the law changes, the aftercare, and what to expect during the heal.

However, the main limitation for intimate piercings, is that we are not allowed to pierce for function. We are only allowed to pierce for aesthetical reasons. This means we walk a fine line with our clients each and every appointment.

As adults, we are all aware that if you place metal into a sensitive part of your body (where it wasn’t before), then sensations might change. We are not allowed to discuss this with you. “purely for the purpose of personal decoration”5 We have clients get intimate piercings that come from all walks of lives and have so many different reasons to get pierced. Some want it purely for the looks, some want it for kink dynamics, some want it to reclaim ownership of their body. However, the minute a client may mention they want to ‘use’ the piercing, we can no longer pierce.


If you would like to know more about intimate piercings or the process here at Rogue, here are some attached links!

https://roguepiercing.co.uk/2023/05/12/vch-aftercare-101-vch-hch-piercings/
https://roguepiercing.co.uk/2021/06/11/female-intimate-piercings/
https://roguepiercing.co.uk/intimate-piercing-info/

To book a consultation or a piercing at Rogue you can book here.
Contact us.
Instagram.

If you believe a girl is at risk, or has recently been a victim of FGM (Female Genital Mutilation” call the police on 999 (for urgent/emergency cases) or 101 for non emergency.
NHS ENGLAND FGM
FGM Nottingham Poster
Mandatory reporting procedure
FGM Resource Pack

If you, or someone you know has been a victim, please do not hesitate to reach our for support.
NSPCC FGM helpline – a 24-hour free helpline for anyone worried about FGM: 0800 028 3550.
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/female-genital-mutilation-fgm/national-fgm-support-clinics/

1 https://www.cps.gov.uk/legal-guidance/female-genital-mutilation

2 https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/female-genital-mutilation

3 https://thepointjournal.org/2015/04/06/point-70-when-is-piercing-mutilation-paul-king/

4 https://ukapp.org.uk/history.html

5 https://www.cps.gov.uk/legal-guidance/female-genital-mutilation

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Piercings and Skin Conditions

Hello everyone! Today we’re taking a bit of a deep-dive into something that is very important to know about – How your skin impacts on your piercings, and how your piercings impact on your skin! We’re going to talk about eczema and psoriasis, and getting a piercing on Accutane.

The British Skin Foundation has found that 60% of Britons have a skin condition, or have experienced a skin condition in the past at some stage of their life. That is a lot of people! These skin conditions can range from mild to severe, but the most common are eczema, psoriasis, and cystic acne.

Eczema

Eczema is an incredibly common skin condition, affecting up to 25% of the population. Most common in childhood, eczema can follow us into our adult life where it is more common to impact on your piercings.

Eczema can cause itching and flaky skin. It tends to go through phases of flare-ups, punctuated by periods of healing and normal skin. This can be really annoying!

This is a good example of what an eczema flare-up can look like on an ear. There are lots of things that can trigger a flare-up, but the most common causes are the introduction of new cleaning products and stress – Both of these things can be experienced after a piercing!

So how do you work with eczema? The most important thing to do is to wait until you are not in a flare-up before getting a piercing. Piercing irritated skin will only cause more irritation, and can make your flare-up more intense and last longer. We promise we will still be here when your skin is healthy.

Taking care of piercings when you have an eczema flare-up can be tricky. Depending on the treatment you choose, it can irritate your piercings whilst soothing your skin. Both emollients and steroid creams can be harmful to a piercing. Steroids especially can cause some grumpiness! We recommend avoiding putting any creams or lotions directly onto your piercings, and leaving a good 10mm gap around them. Topical steroids especially can have long-term impacts on the skin that they are applied to. Most commonly, skin can become thinner and more fragile. This can slow down the healing process quite significantly.

Cleaning your piercings is very important when you are having a flare-up. Excessive skin buildup is common, and this can cause irritation when it accumulates on and around your piercings. We recommend moving to a once-daily cleaning routine. Be mindful of sterile saline, as although it is isotonic and non-irritating, it may be an eczema trigger for some people. If you find that saline is a little too harsh, cleaning your piercings after you have had a warm shower to soften the buildup with plain water is perfectly acceptable.

We like to stay in contact with clients who have eczema and other skin conditions, so that we can monitor the progress of their piercings and give them advice if necessary.

Important Takeaways

  • Avoid getting piercings during a flareup.
  • Ensure you are removing any skin buildup with gentle cleaning.
  • Do not apply emollients or steroids near your piercings.

Piercing on Accutane

Acne is a very common skin condition! Approximately 85% of the population will experience acne at some stage of their lives, most commonly between the ages of 16 and 25. Of course, the severity can vary wildly! Acne is only a consideration if we are aiming to pierce the affected skin, or if you are taking acne medication. It is really important to let us know if you are taking any medications! So can you get a piercing on accutane?

Accutane is a very strong medication that works by affecting the cell cycle. Although its method of action is not precisely known, its anti-acne effects are achieved by the drug triggering apoptosis (cell death) of sebaceous oil gland cells. These mechanisms can slow down the blockage of pores, and makes the skin more inhospitable to acne-worsening bacteria. Sounds great, right?

Unfortunately, Accutane is also pretty terrible for your skin! It has a lot of side-effects, many of which affect wound healing. The most common side-effects are intensely dry and fragile skin, UV sensitivity, rashes, and slower healing of wounds. This is pretty nasty, and definitely will impact on your piercings!

Piercings are not the same as a standard wound – The introduction of jewellery means that your body is already dealing with something abnormal. Piercings take months, and sometimes up to a year or two to heal. Introducing Accutane to the picture means this healing process may fail entirely.

So how should you work around it? The bottom line is that you should not be getting a piercing on Accutane. The medical community even recommends avoiding being waxed, never mind being pierced! It is recommended to finish your Accutane course, and then wait a further six months to allow your skin to normalise again before getting a piercing.

Accutane can also impact on piercings that you may have had for a long time. As Accutane damages the cell cycle, you may notice that existing piercings may get irritated easily. It’s important to remember that this irritation will not go away until your treatment is finished – Talk to your piercer, and we can formulate a plan on how to move forward. Depending on the piercing, it may be best to retire severely irritated piercings and repierce them at a later date. In the meantime, go right back to basics with them – Cleaning once a day, ensuring your jewellery fits appropriately, and is of a suitable style.

Intensely dry skin can definitely cause discomfort – Keep your skin protected by applying an appropriately thick and luscious moisturiser. Invest in a good lip balm!

Important Takeaways

  • Do not get a piercing on Accutane, or for 6 months after your treatment is finished.
  • Be mindful that even healed piercings can get very irritated – Keep in contact with your piercer for personalised advice.
  • Go back to basics with caring for your piercings. Clean gently with warm warm water, keep your piercings dry, and do not touch them!

So in summary, we require a lot of communication between piercer and client. What may have worked for you in the past in terms of healing, may not work for you depending on your flare up and medication. We like to take a cautious approach, and start with one or two easier healing piercings before moving onto more complicated work, just so we can observe and discuss how healing impacts you.

If you have any questions, definitely drop us an email! Make sure to follow us on social media as well, to stay updated with all of our work.

See you next Friday for a new blog!