QOW: Jewelry Sinking into the Skin
Answer: This problem is called "embedding" and while it does happen, it's not a good situation. You can go back to your piercer, but go quickly before all traces of the jewelry are gone. Or, if you can, remove it now and then go see your piercer to see if you can get a new labret stud put in there if it hasn't already closed up. Having to remove the jewelry and allowing it to close is a much smaller problem than having to have the jewelry surgically removed, which probably would require stitches.
The most common cause of this problem is the labret bar being too short. Since it's a relatively new piercing, your lip is probably still swollen and you're supposed to be pierced with an extra long bar to accommodate the swelling. (This same rule applies to most bar piercings) Once you're healed, then you can switch to a shorter bar. Whether your piercer gave you too short of a bar to begin with or you (unwisely) changed it too early, it needs to be fixed immediately or you're going to have a very serious problem on your hands.
Comments
This happened to me with a regular ear piercing when I was younger. The backing was too tight and it was a little swollen, and the back went under the skin. My mother told me the backing had just fallen off, so we didn’t do anything about it, but when the swelling finally went down and I could see the metal through the skin, a doctor removed it. It hurt and bled a little but did not need stitches. I would recommend going to a doctor ASAP; you may need to let the piercing heal up and have It re-done. The doctor will tell you what to do.
Hope that helps.
Go see your piercer immediately. Your doctor will tell you to take out the piercing. What doctors don’t realize is that taking out an unhealed piercing leaves a channel in which dirt and or bacteria can collect. As the piercing will heal over on the ends first anything in there becomes trapped and can cause cause an infection which would be worse than going back to your piercer and having them put a longer piece of jewelry in to accomidate the swelling. Go to your piercer first. If you need to go to a doctor after your consultation with your piercer you piercer will tell you so. Always see your piercer first.
THANK YOU “PIERCER RONNY” for saying that. i am a big fan of piercing and try to educate myself about them as much as possible, and i get so annoyed when people tell me that their doctor said to remove the piercing. i try explaingin to them that the entry and exit holes close first, leaving bacteria trapped inside the hole without being able to drain , but most people’s response is “oh yeh you know more than a doctor right?” and when i explain that any piercer would tell them the same thing, they go “oh yeh, cus some man in a tattoo shop knows more than a doctor? obviously doctors know about the body” despite me telling them doctors dont know shit about piercings. but these are usually people that get all their piercings in the mall so, whatever. but i never understood why doctors tell people to take the piercing out. how do they not realize what is going to happen?
Im going through this right now with my snakebites. The left one is COMPLETELY under my skin, the left one is halfway under. I’m going back to my piercer tomorrow to have him put the correct jewelry in and they better not charge because he should’ve did it right the first time. I will sue otherwise.