Forum Discussion - The Do's and Don'ts of Healing a Tongue Piercing

Each person is different when it comes to the swelling and the healing of tongue piercings. You may be one of the lucky ones that have little or no swelling. On average it is the worst the first 3 days or so, but can swell for one to two weeks, again, it depends on the person. There are some things you can do to help minimize it if it does happen though. These are things I recommend, every piercer will be a little different!

• NO alcohol the night before or for at least two weeks after - this dehydrates your body and can cause more swelling.
• Drink plenty of cold fluids - ice water is best.
• Eat a well balanced diet.
• 800 mg of ibuprofen every 4 hours will help with both pain and swelling. [Note from editor: Please follow the advice of a physician before taking any kind of medicine, prescription or non-prescription, you are not familiar with]
• Do not overclean the area as that is just as bad and sometimes worse than not cleaning at all.
• Get plenty of rest and sleep with your head elevated on a pillow.
• Don't play with it, as this can irritate the area and cause swelling.
• No french kissing or giving oral sex for at least two weeks - can irritate it.
• The tongue is a muscle.....treat it as such......don't stop using it, but don't over use it either!
• Follow your piercer's aftercare, and you should be fine!