Nose Rings and Piercings

Nose piercing has been a part of various world cultures for hundreds of years

It's only been in the last two decades that nose piercing has gained a mainstream popularity in Western culture. Presently, it is the second most-popular body piercing desired by teens and young adults.

This lens will tell you about nose piercings, give some history, offer advice on healing and aftercare, and makes some recommendations for nose rings and jewelry. And be sure to let you opinion be known in the debate about nose piercings in the workplace!

Information About Nose piercing

Nose piercings don't always heal as easily as people assume. They do not heal as easily as pierced ears. The tissue of the nose is "cartilage" which is a hard-but-flexible material in our bodies. The blood flow isn't as plentiful as "soft tissue" which is the type of material that forms the lower ear lobes.

Friction from a too-tight or too-large nose stud or ring, an accidental yank or snag, or even some people's genetic predispositions can cause a type of scar tissue, called a keloid, to form on healing nose piercings. This is that "bump" that everyone always talks about. Reading up on piercing care and knowing how to take care of your healing nose can really help avoid things like infections and keloids (aka "the bump).

Remember to ask your body piercer how to take care of your new nose piercing BEFORE you get your nose pierced. This is important because some people get sort of dizzy or feel a head rush from piercing, and it can make it harder to remember the aftercare info if you talk afterwards. (really!)

Nostril Piercing

the common nose ring

The most commonly pierced place on the nose is somewhere along the rim of the nostril. Placement is most often at the peak of the curved edge.

Jewelry is most often a small stud or ring. For healing a nose piercing, wearing a ring allows the piercing to be cleaned more easily. Whatever is worn, it's best to wear gold or steel during the 3 month healing period. Do NOT wear sterling silver as it has the unfortunate side effect of leave a permanent black mark on your nose.

The most common complaint about nose piercings is that, like many other cartilage piercings, these can form a keloid, a bump-like type of scar tissue. This is most often due to friction or continuous irritation of the piercing.

As common as this piercing has become, they aren't as easy to heal as most young people assume. Many people do not truly anticipate what it's going to be like to have what is really a healing wound on their face for two to three months.

It often helps to try not to sleep facedown and to change your pillowcase more often while healing a nose piercing. Do not put rubbing alcohol or hydrogen peroxide on a healing nose piercing as both can burn the raw tissues inside the piercing and increase irritation.

The Earl or Bridge Piercing

A modern nose piercing that's been invented is sometimes called the "earl" or bridge piercing and involves a barbell being pierced through the skin over the bridge of the nose. The only part of the body jewelry visible are the two balls on the ends of the bar, which rest on either side of the nose.

Facial movement and surface tension makes this a difficult piercing to heal for some people. Others abandon the piercing as having the balls just inside their field of vision becomes annoying.

This piercing got the name "earl" from one of the first people who ever got this piercing. Earl played the tattooed and pierced elder on the vampire high council in the first Blade movie, wearing his own body art, not makeup, for the role.

Nose Piercing Prejudice

The one thing you have to remember if you're going to get your nose pierced is that in Western culture, it's still frowned upon in a lot of places. There are plenty of people who will dismiss you as weird, kinky, masochistic, self-damaging and just not "right" when they see you have a nose piercing. It's pretty common for people to be told to take any facial piercings out at their place of work, or to not get hired for a job if you have a facial piercing, regardless of your actual resume and qualifications.

If you aren't up to withstanding any of these prejudgments, don't get your nose pierced.

Nose Piercing and Personal Rights

Where do you stand on the issue?

Welcome to the debate on nose piercings! Let us know whether you think nose piercings have an effect on how someone does their job. (when you start to type an answer, the buttons that let you pick the pro or con option will appear)