FAQ Piercings

Pain during the piercing process and afterwards?

No! Not with us. The piercing process in our studio is absolutely painless due to a real local anaesthesia beforehand. Even after insertion and later on, during the healing process, pain or discomfort is negligible. After healing, the piercings are completely insensitive and, depending on the location, can be subjected to mechanical stress.

Which place to get a piercing?

Get it where you find it most beautiful, where you think it suits you best. If you want everyone to see it, then in the face. If you have a beautiful belly and navel, then on the navel. If you want something mysterious and erotic, then consider a nipple or intimate piercing.

How many piercings?

Similar to tattoos, fewer piercings work better than many. As a charming variant, you can group a few piercings, similar to earrings.

Which material?

We normally use titanium or bioplast. These are equivalent in material quality and both equally hypoallergenic, and therefore well tolerated by those allergic to nickel. The formerly widely used surgical steel 316L is now only used if you are not allergic. Gold as first piercing only with reservation (wound healing problems are more frequent than with titanium or bioplast). If gold or silver jewellery, then only very pure quality, and only use once the piercing has healed completely.

Tongue piercings: nerve or taste paralysis?

This question is often asked: there are stories about people who had a loss of taste or a paralysed tongue after the tongue piercing. Such stories are basically horror stories:

For the following reason: If the piercing is done at the right place, namely exactly in the middle, with longitudinally directed cut of the needle, no nerves, not even small nerve fibres, are cut. The nerves enter the tongue from below and from both sides and end in the middle. The full sensitivity and sensory function of the tongue is preserved.

If a loss of taste or a paralysis occurred, then the piercing was done completely wrong and unprofessionally. After many hundreds of tongue piercings, we have not had a single such case.

MRI, X-ray, operations:
piercing removal necessary?

Often, piercing wearers are forced by medical staff to remove all piercings before an examination. Completely unfounded nonsense!

MRI: the piercing (non-magnetic) must be removed only if it is in the area of the examination, or under the “coil”, because of image artefacts or current induction (e.g. remove tongue piercing in skull MRI, but not because of knee or spine). There is no magnetic effect, no significant heating in such small parts.

X-ray and CT: does not matter unless it is exactly in the area of interest.

Surgery: Because of current flow during haemostasis (electrocoagulation), piercings can heat up. The surgical staff always wants them all removed. Remedy. Remove them immediately before the operation and put them back afterwards. Or get a placeholder piercing made of bioplast beforehand and put it in. Bioplast piercings do not have to be removed.

Which piercings grow out?

Basically, all piercings which are not embedded in a good anatomical structure will grow out to some extent. Outgrowth always takes place in the late phase of wound healing, i.e. after the first 2 months to a year. After that, nothing happens any more.

The better a fold is present, the less the risk of outgrowth. But even here it can happen, so the piercing channel needs to be deep enough under the skin.

No outgrowth in tongue, clit foreskin, clit, lower lip, labia, Prince Albert.

Slight outgrowth possible in nipple, belly button with good fold.

Stronger outgrowth possible in eyebrow, belly button without fold.

How long can I remove my piercing?

Piercing channels narrow very quickly after removal. In belly button piercings, even a few months after getting the piercing, you will have great difficulty in putting it back in after only one hour of removal. After a year, you can remove it for half a day. We recommend to always wear the piercing, apart from cleaning or exchanging it – for that, you can take it out for some minutes.        

What remains after removal?

Two tiny little scars (dots), somewhat darker than the rest of the skin. No comparison to what remains of an unwanted tattoo!

What is the healing process like?

After the piercing is done, when the local anaesthesia stops working, it can rarely hurt very slightly. The subsequent healing is usually problem-free, and goes continuously into a direct healing.

However, there can always be a regression, especially in belly button piercings: The pierced area becomes inflamed, reddened, oozes greasy wound secretions, or flesh growths appear at the edges. Then you have to take special care, wash with disinfectant soap, (e.g. Betadine liquid), try a wound ointment, in very stubborn cases ointment with antibiotic additive. In most cases, the piercing calms down again and the healing finds a happy end. Bathing in the sea (salt water) is also very good. Tea tree oil has also helped a lot. What also often works wonders, is the change to another, new piercing. A bacterial coating, which is almost impossible to remove, can form on old, worn piercings.

Other places (face, intimate) heal much faster and without problems.

In case of problems, please contact us anytime : All piercings done by XS Percing can be shown to us free of charge.

Aftercare and wound healing problems

Disinfect only in the first 3 days for 2 times a day, as long as the wound is fresh. Longer disinfection is counterproductive for wound healing. From the second day when showering and bathing, clean with soap, move the piercing up and down, clean, remove crusts, rinse. Later, only support with wound ointments like Bepanthene, if at all. For fresh tongue piercings, gargle with desinfecting mouthwash solution (i.e. Hextril, Kamillosan).

For problems that occur after weeks or months after the piercing appointment (smearing, suppurating or irritated sores): Renewed treatment with Betadine soap for 1 week, once  a day, possibly exchange piercing jewellery. Should the issues persist, use of an antibiotic cream for 5 days can help.

Please contact us anytime for in-depth-advice regarding all your piercing issues.

see also care instructions for piercings

Risks

Basically the risk of infection, bleeding, non-healing for unknown reasons, excessive scarring and allergy. The frequency of side effects depends on the location of the piercing (most difficult: belly buttons, most problem-free: intimate piercings) and on individual disposition. Belly piercings on fat bellies cause more problems than on slim ones. Nipples are sensitive to mechanical irritation, even long after healing. Overall, however, difficult healing problems are rare.           

When can I go into a swimming pool and sunbathing?

Swimming pool: Take at least a break of two weeks – the longer, the better. Disinfect the piercing after your pool session.
Seawater is generally good, it significantly accelerates healing or stops problems (see above).
Sun: different tanning of the skin (like scar tissue) at the piercing edge, but hardly visible. If you don’t want that, you have to cover the piercing during sunbathing.