Tag: monroe piercing aftercare

How About Getting A Monroe Piercing?

Monroe Piercing Trendy lip piercing can be done in a number of ways and one of the favorite ones is Monroe Piercing. It is called Monroe, Crawford or Madonna because it is named after the position in which these actresses had a beauty spot above their upper lip.

Monroe piercing is considered very safe because there are very few nerves in this area of your face. In about three to six weeks you get completely healed. Also, the mouth has enzymes that destroy bacteria, so the risk of an infection is also minimized.

Monroe Piercing Jewelry

Monroe piercing is popular with both men and women.  It is done just above the upper lip, off center to the left, and looks great with labret rings and studs. Labrets are pierced just under the lip and above the chin. This looks quite sexy and if you choose to wear a black round stud, it will look just like the beauty mark it is named after. If you prefer to wear a gemstone, then of course it will twinkle every time you move.

Generally, a Monroe piercing can be enhanced with a 12, 16 or 18 gauge labret. You can also get a double Monroe, called the Crayfish done; here the piercing is done on both sides of the upper lip. If you wear longish barbells unlike the short ones on the Monroe piercing, it resembles the antennae of the crayfish, so that’s where it gets its name from. The popular jewelry choice for the Monroe piercing is the metal ball sometimes set with a gem.

Caring For Your Monroe Piercing

After you get your Monroe piercing done, expect some swelling in and around the lip area. Just like any other piercing, this too can get infected, so you must take care to keep your mouth and jewelry clean. This will also avoid scarring. While getting the piercing, make sure to get it done from a professional who is aware that the superior labial artery above the upper lip is not punctured.

The procedure is practically painless though you may feel a little discomfort if you have thick lips. Men are said to find it slightly more painful since their skin is tougher to pierce. If you play any wind instruments you might feel discomfort because the muscles around your mouth will be larger.

Be aware that the metal stud of the Monroe piercing jewelry can rub against your gums and teeth, damaging them. You can, however avoid this by wearing plastic labret studs.

FUNNY FACT! Did you know that Monroe piercing is the least painful body piercing because there’s very few nerves in this area of the face?

Piercing Aftercare Recommendations

Body Piercing Aftercare
When you’re got a new body piercing – oral, facial or even a common ear piercing – you have to be at least aware of how the fresh piercing has to be taken care of.

Body piercing aftercare guidelines are universal for most of the body piercing types except the oral body piercings – it’s due to the unique location of these body piercings.

The first body piercing aftercare guideline to remember – don’t take the body jewelry out until the fresh piercing hasn’t undergone the first healing stage called ‘primary healing’.

The pierced hole is most vulnerable and prone to infections during the initial healing stage and I guess it shouldn’t pose you any problems with keeping the initial body jewelry in.

As for the best materials for the first time piercings – they are surgical grade stainless steel, titanium and Bioplast. These materials are very body friendly and will provide ideal conditions for healing. And if you have any allergy towards metals, Bioplast should do the trick.

The second body piercing aftercare recommendation – use common sense when handling your fresh piercing. This includes washing hands before touching the piercing and avoiding sexual contacts when you get a genital or oral body piercing, for example.

Remember – there are many infections that can get into your fresh piercing like bacterial and viral infections and also parasitic infections. The last ones can result from swimming in open waters while the piercing hasn’t fully healed yet, like seas and rivers. So bear this in mind, too – while the piercing is healing, no swimming!

A universal body piercing aftercare advice for most fresh body piercing is soaking it with saline solution a few times a day. The reasoning behind this is the healing properties of sea salt solution. Its chemical consistence is similar to that of your body fluids, and on top of that by soaking the fresh piercing with the saline solution you will wash away any excess body fluids that are drying up around the piercing hole. This in turn will prevent bacterial build-ups in the piercing.

Some body piercers advise that good body piercing aftercare includes using antibacterial products as well. For example – antibacterial soap that can be gently applied to the piercing while taking shower and then washed off.

However, this can also lead to destroying the healthy bacteria that resides on your body around the fresh piercing. And you certainly don’t want this to happen, do you?

The most interesting approach to body piercing aftercare is LITHA. Can you guess the meaning of this abbreviation? Common, try!

Are you giving up? OK – let me tell you!

Leave It The Hell Alone! As you can imagine, this body piercing aftercare principle is very simple – just leave the piercing on its own and allow your body deal with it!

If it seems to be too extreme, just think about this. Let’s say, you got slightly injured and have a wound. You cut yourself and applied a plaster on the cut. Then ask yourself now – would you remove the plaster and clean the wound a few times daily just to facilitate the healing process?

Well, most likely – not! So this is exactly what the LITHA method involves – leaving your body alone and assuming that a healthy and strong human’s body should be absolutely fine with healing a comparatively small wound.