Tongue Piercing Healing Time: Stages, Aftercare and Timeline

You want an amazing tongue piercing, right? Then you need to know the healing stages and the follow up routines. The only way to keep your new piercing looking its best is to care for it properly.

How Long Does Tongue Piercing Healing Take?

A tongue piercing actually heals very quickly compared to other piercings, such as nose piercings. In fact, if you remove the jewelry before your tongue piercing is fully healed, you risk having the hole close up within a few hours.

So do not take your jewelry out before it is completely healed. Even once the healing process is done, you will need to keep the jewelry in most of the time to stop the hole from closing.

So how long does it take for a tongue piercing to heal?

It depends on:

• Your body
• Your overall health
• Your oral hygiene
• How well you follow the aftercare routine

But in general, your new tongue piercing should be fully healed within 6 to 8 weeks. At that point, you can switch the jewelry for something different if you like.

What to Do on the Day of Your Tongue Piercing

When you get your tongue pierced, you can expect to go through a multi stage healing process. On the very first day, you may not notice much swelling yet, but you should still pay close attention to the piercing.

By being very careful and as gentle as possible with your new piercing from day one, you will avoid unnecessary tongue pain and swelling in the days that follow.

• Before getting your piercing, you might want to treat yourself to your favorite meal. A healing tongue piercing makes eating somewhat difficult because of the swelling, so your food choices will be limited for a while after the piercing.
• The most important thing is to keep your piercing clean. You can start using sea salt rinses the day you get your tongue pierced. It is a gentle antiseptic. Be sure to use warm water to dissolve the salt.
  
  The first day is when you will learn to make your own salt water rinse. Simply heat a cup of distilled water and mix in 1/4 teaspoon of sea salt.

• You should also rinse your mouth with an alcohol free antiseptic mouthwash. So if you do not have a mouthwash like this, today is the day to go and get one.
• If an alcohol based mouthwash is all you have, you can dilute it with a little water and use it to rinse your mouth.
  
  Diluting the mouthwash will reduce the irritation caused by the alcohol.

What to Do During the Rest of the Healing Phase

Once you have gotten through the first day, it is more or less the same routine.

Your tongue will be swollen for about 5 to 10 days, so take it easy with what you eat. As the swelling goes down, you can gradually add back foods that require more chewing.

• In the meantime, do not eat or drink anything too hot. Your tongue is already going to be a bit sore, and you do not want it burned and swollen. On top of that, eating cold foods or drinking ice water can help improve tongue piercing healing.

• You also want to avoid foods that irritate wounds. This includes acidic foods, such as oranges and lemons, alcohol, and spicy foods. After every meal, use an antiseptic mouthwash (or water) to rinse your mouth.

• When you have the time, keep rinsing with salt water twice a day until the piercing is fully healed. Doing this when you get ready in the morning and when you get ready for bed at night is an easy way to add it to your routine without forgetting.

• Brushing your teeth is another way to keep your mouth clean and prevent infections or complications, and to improve tongue piercing healing. It stops food particles from building up in your mouth. Brush gently and avoid hitting the jewelry. You should not brush your tongue until the end of the first week.

• Make sure every day to check the balls on the ends of the jewelry and confirm they are tight. You do not want to accidentally swallow a piece, and a new piercing can close up fairly quickly if the jewelry falls out.

• Always wash your hands before cleaning or tightening your tongue jewelry.

What Not to Do While Your Tongue Piercing Heals

Nobody likes having a long list of things NOT to do. But if you avoid a few activities during the healing process, your tongue piercing will heal much more easily and quickly.

Do Not Play With the Jewelry

Keep your hands out of your mouth. Those hands pick up bacteria everywhere you go.

And it is not just your hands:

1. Do not chew on anything (such as nails, pens, or even gum)
2. Do not bite the jewelry or run it along your teeth.

Avoid Oral Sex and Kissing

It is not taboo, but as long as you have a wound in your mouth, you should hold off.

Do Not Smoke

Cigarette or marijuana smoke will irritate your new tongue piercing. If you smoke, you will need to stop before getting your tongue pierced, and do not start again until it is completely healed at around 2 months.

How to Clean a Tongue Piercing

You already know you can use an antiseptic mouthwash, plain water, and salt water to rinse and keep your tongue piercing clean. We covered cleaning the jewelry, and you now know you should keep brushing your teeth every day.

Once the swelling has gone down, you can also start brushing your tongue again, including brushing the jewelry. You should keep rinsing your mouth with mouthwash up to five times a day until the piercing is completely healed.

If you have a double tongue piercing, try to clean around each one as best you can.

When Can You Stop Cleaning Your Tongue Piercing?

After 6 to 8 weeks, your piercing will be fully healed. But that does not mean you should stop cleaning your piercings. You should always keep your mouth clean.

A tongue piercing infection can develop at any time, even if you have had your piercing for years. That is because tiny wounds can form and let bacteria in.

On the other hand, once the healing process is over and the tongue piercing is healed, you can reduce the amount of cleaning by brushing your teeth, flossing, and rinsing your mouth about once a day.

You will no longer need to use a salt water rinse at this stage, but it is still a good idea to rinse your mouth with water after eating. If any sign of irritation develops, or if your piercing gets injured, you can use salt water to clean it and prevent infection.

When Can You Replace Your Tongue Jewelry?

Part of the fun of having a new piercing is putting cool jewelry in it.

Once the initial swelling has fully gone down, around 7 to 10 days, you can start looking into new tongue jewelry.

Why not buy a new piece and change it yourself?

After 7 to 10 days, the swelling and pain may be gone, but that does not mean everything is fully healed. It is best to have a professional insert the new jewelry.

Then, after two months, as long as you have not had any complications or infections, you can change your tongue jewelry whenever you like.

And do not forget to always wash your hands before removing or replacing any jewelry. It is also a good idea to wash the jewelry with soap and water before inserting it.

Conclusion