Inside: When Can I Change My Ear Piercing?
So you’ve had your ears pierced and you aren’t a fan of the ball studs you’re now rocking? Unfortunately, you should be patient when thinking about changing the jewelry in a fresh piercing, as changing the jewelry too early can lead to infection, inflammation and even the piercing closing up.
If you’ve paid to have your piercing done, chances are you don’t want it to close up, and you’d be surprised how quickly this can happen with new piercings. the longer you have a piercing, the longer you can leave it without wearing an earring/piece of jewelry.
When Can I Change My Ear Piercing?
When Can I Change My Ear Lobe Piercings?
For ear piercings, it is recommended to wait 6-8 weeks before attempting to change your earring. This is recommended as 6-8 weeks is the length of time that it takes for a piercing to heal. It should be noted that healing time does vary from person to person, so you should ensure that your piercing is properly healed before trying to change the jewelry to prevent infection.
When Can I Change My Ear Cartilage Piercings?
Ear cartilage takes longer than your regular lobe piercing to heal. generally, it takes between 3 months to 1 year for such piercings to heal fully. We would not recommend changing your piercing before 6 months. Scar tissue can also form easily around cartilage piercings, so it is recommended that you see a piercing store when you wish to change this for the first time to avoid keloid scars forming.
Healing Times for Different Areas of the Ear
Initial Healing Time Frames:
- Earlobe: 6-8 weeks
- Helix: 2-4 months
- Forward Helix: 2-4 months
- Flat: 2-4 months
- Conch: 2-4 months
- Tragus: 2-4 months
- Daith: 2-4 months
- Rook: 2-4 months
- Industrial: 3-6 months
Full Healing Time Frames:
- Earlobe: 4-6 months
- Helix: 6-9+ months
- Forward Helix: 6-9+ months
- Flat: 6-9+ months
- Conch: 6-9+ months
- Tragus: 6-9+ months
- Daith: 6-9+ months
- Rook: 6-9+ months
- Industrial: 8 months – 1+ year
Remember This When Channing Ear Piercing
Don’t change jewelry too soon or put in low-quality materials:
If you want to change your earring before it’s fully healed (i.e. at least 2 months for lobe, 3-12 months for the upper or inner ear), the replacement should be implant grade titanium, or solid 14k or 18k gold. Anything else may irritate the still-healing spot.
We recommend coming back to us or a professional piercer to swap out your piercing jewelry!