The worry of having to take your piercing out. It is well known that skin piercings (lobes, lips, nostrils, and so on) tend to close back up fairly quickly. Sometimes so much so that you do not dare remove them, afraid you will struggle to put them back in.
So how long does it take for a nose piercing to close? It can happen in just a few hours or take several days. It all depends on whether you have had the piercing for a long time, and on how fast your body heals. Want a bit more detail? Here is the full picture, plus a few tips to reopen your nose piercing if it has started to close.
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How Long Does a Nose Piercing Take to Close?
It depends on plenty of factors.
Ideally, to make sure a nose piercing never closes, you would always wear jewelry in it. But in everyday life, there are plenty of reasons you may need to take it out, such as:
- medical exams
- taking an ID photo
- certain sports
- some job interviews
Most of the time, the piercing is out only briefly, just an hour or two before you can put it back. In that case, unless you have a super fast healing ability, the hole does not close.
On the other hand, as soon as the jewelry is out for several hours at a time, things get more complicated. Even though the hole does not necessarily close, it does at least start to heal over. Its already very thin diameter gets even thinner. Putting the jewelry back can then become tricky, and even a little painful.
Do not even think about leaving it out for a whole day. Whether that same evening or the next day, the hole will be almost entirely closed. There are exceptions, though:
- Some people heal much more slowly than others. If that is you, you are in luck: even after several hours, your nose piercing will probably still be there.
- If you have had your nose piercing for several years, you do not need to worry too much either. It is unlikely to close that fast. It will still eventually heal over after a few days, so be careful, unless of course you are tired of your piercing and actually want the hole to close.
Fresh piercing? How long it takes to close depends a lot on how far along healing is. See our guide on nose piercing healing time.
How to Reopen a Nose Piercing
Struggling to get your jewelry back in?
If you took your nose piercing out for a few hours and your hole has started to close, do not panic, there is still time to reopen it. Here is how to do it:
- Run your face under nice warm water to soften the tissue.
- Wash your hands carefully to remove any bacteria.
- Disinfect your jewelry too, with your usual antiseptic.
- If you have a water-based lubricant, add a few drops to help it slide.
- Finally, gently reinsert your nose jewelry into the hole.
Even though this is not a fresh piercing, it is very important that both your hands and your jewelry are clean so you do not risk any infection. And a heads up: it may hurt a little, or even bleed if the healing process was well underway. It should not last very long, though.
Has your nose piercing almost completely closed? Can you no longer get the jewelry in at all, even following these steps? Do not butcher your nose by forcing it. Your piercing was out for too long, and in that case the best move is to go back to your piercer, who will tell you what to do next.
Got a spiral piece that is hard to line up? Our guide on the corkscrew nose piercing shows the exact motion to get it back in.
Conclusion
It can be very fast. Within a few hours, a nose piercing can start to close. The more recent it is, the more easily it closes, especially for people who heal quickly.
Unless you actually want it to close, the best approach is to never leave the jewelry out for too long. That said, it is still possible to reopen a hole that has only just begun to heal over.
