What is the best way to deal with a painful and infected navel piercing?

Question

I'm sure that my belly piercing is infected. I've had it for three months and it hurts when I examine it, when I take it out it bleeds, it expels pus and when it is not in my navel there is a hard lump where the hole is.

I need to know what I can do to help this clear up and maybe make the lump go away.

Thank you!

Answer 1

You should see your doctor to give you antibiotics for the infection. He will also be able to tell you how to care for it. It will probably have to be removed, if it's infected then it's just an open wound in your body that isn't healing right now.  

Answer 2

You shouldn't be removing it at 3 months.   I had the lump too - do sea salt soaks a couple times a day, go talk to a professional piercer about it.

Answer 3

Best bet is doing Soaks twice a day.

Use Non-Iodized Sea Salt - NEVER Table salt as it dries the piercing out. Put 1/2 a teaspoon into an egg cup, and mix with boiling water. Allow the water to cool to a tolerable level, bend forward, place the egg cup over your navel piercing, to create a seal, then stand up straight. Allow the piercing to soak for about 4-5 minutes. When you've done this, clean with a cotton bud [q-tip for americans] for any stubborn "crusties" that didn't come off in the soak.

If it continues to bleed and is oozing pus, after doing the soaks for a while, then best bet is to see a doctor and your piercer.

And as for whoever it was that said that you shouldn't remove it at 3 months, the APP [Association of Professional Piercers] recommends that you do not remove body jewellery from a piercing for at least 6 weeks. After that it is normally fairly safe to do so, bearing in mind that it is viable - such as the piercing and the jewellery being kept clean, and that it is not extremely infected.

Answer 4

lavender or tee-tree essential oils with boiling hot salt water. beautiful. i hav a belly bar 2. x

Answer 5

keep cleaning it do not take it out as it can trap the infection use a salt water mix i bought h2ocean and it worked wonderfully just use it a few times a day and its in a sterilized can. you can definitely make a warm salt water mix urself it would probably be cheaper but its not sterilized and it would be harder to get on it unlike the spray but its still possible. just make sure u keep cleaning itand dont take it out or play with it for a good while