Now that you have your piercing, you will need to take good care of it. You should always follow your piercer's instructions, but this will provide you with some basics about how to make sure your piercing heals well. The most important things about any new piercing is do not touch it unless you are cleaning it, do not let your friends touch it and never over clean your new piercing.

For most external piercings (not in the mouth):

When in the shower shampoo, condition, wash and rinse everything off your body. Taking a small amount of dial antibacterial soap on your clean fingers work this onto the piercing being careful to remove any buildup of lymph (crusties) on the ring or bar. Never use cotton balls or cotton swabs this only introduces another foreign substance to the body. Rinse the piercing site and jewelry with warm water making sure all the soap is gone, and then pat the area dry. It is very important that this is done two times a day no more no less.

With other non-professional piercings you may have been taught to use rubbing alcohol or peroxide to clean sore and otherwise angry piercings. The problem is both products kill live tissue therefore they do as much damage as good to a healing piercing. Any professional piercer would have explained its use to you.

• Never I repeat never buy any solution made for contact lens cleaning to rinse a piercing with. If you were told to do this by your piercer I can only suggest you find someone who truly knows his or her trade.

The only thing safe to use with an angry piercing is sea salt with no iodine. This can be bought at most good health food stores for as little as a dollar or two. I recommend clients to secure a coffee cup specifically for their piercings. This cup should be filled with warm water, if the cup is microwaveable this can be done in a microwave keeping in mind we are putting this on your body. So please warm to the body only, not warm enough to brew coffee, steep tea or burn yourself. To this cup of warm water add one half to one teaspoon of sea salt and stir to dissolve.

• No the water in the ocean is not ever cleaning your piercing. Any benefit from salt in seawater is nullified by the amount of bacteria present.

I suggest using a clean towel to catch any spilled water and placing it somewhere below the piercing. The best way to do a sea salt soak is to invert the cup directly over the piercing, forming a good seal against the skin, and leave it there for about five minutes. This works well with navel, nipple, and most surface piercings. Other piercings such as the ear, nostril or labret this is sometimes not possible. In any such case take a clean paper towel and make a compress remembering to keep the compress drippy, and then apply it to the piercing. Never double dip this compress to do multiple piercings such as both ears, though both ears could use the same solution as long as clean compresses are used for both.

• Saltwater works by the PH of the water being lower than your body forcing your body to push garbage from it.

• Always remember when using a saltwater compress keep the compress drippy, as it is the volume of saltwater that causes this pushing action.

• This is why dripping products such as h2ocean or ear-care on your piercing or using cotton swabs or q-tips to apply saltwater does nothing.

For oral piercings and external/internal piercings such as the lip or labret:

We recommend using a 50-50 mix of antiseptic mouthwash and water to be used as a quick rinse to remove debris after putting anything into the mouth besides water or ice. Those who brush their tongue should wait a couple weeks before resuming this practice after a tongue piercing.

• A white deposit that looks like thick spit on a tongue piercing is part of your body's normal healing process and should be left alone. It will go away when your body no longer needs it. Usually this is around a week or so after you notice it.

• At this time it would be smart to not only check that the balls are tight by grabbing the bottom ball with your clean fingers and turning the top ball to the right, but to start brushing the bottom ball and bottom part of the bar to stop from getting a large tartar buildup.

• Use of Peroxyl or any other oral peroxide is unnecessary and not recommended by us.

Some general things to remember about piercings;

• Do not use any creams, astringents, ointments or makeup on or around your piercing.

• Do not clean the piercing site with alcohol or hydrogen peroxide as these products kill live and healing tissue.

• You shouldn't touch, take off, hang charms from your piercing or change the jewelry until the piercing is completely healed.

• You should keep your piercing from coming into contact with bodily fluids (your own urine is sterile to your body), from getting snagged on clothing or bedding, from being submerged in water for long periods of time and any rough sexual activity in the area of the piercing.

• If you think you have a problem or a question please consult with your piercer immediately. Do not wait a few days or a few weeks.

Remember to simply follow this advice and take proper care of your piercing and you will remain happy with it for years to come.