What do I need to know before getting a septum piercing?
Hello! I’ve finally decided to take the plunge and get a septum piercing. I’m super excited! Unfortunately, I’ve only ever pierced my ears before (and that was back when I was really young). What should I be looking out for? I guess, what would you tell someone getting a septum piercing for the first time? I’m interested in anything and everything! Cost, healing process, tips on caring for it, etc.
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I think the septum piercing is great because it's one of the only piercings you can truly hide. You can always flip it up into your nose if need be! The septum is one of the thinnest parts of the body you can pierce because you’re just piercing a membrane in there. You're not piercing cartilage, so people often say it's one of the least painful piercings you can get. Still, it’s on your face, so expect your eyes to water and to have the feeling that you might sneeze.
Every piercer does a septum piercing differently. Sometimes they'll use clamps, sometimes it'll be free-handed. That's something you should ask your piercer, “How do you pierce? Are you free-handing? Are you using clamps?” This will give you a better sense of the experience.
Septums actually tend to heal pretty quickly, too. They typically take around 10 weeks to heal, which is not as long as many other piercings.
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Every piercer does a septum piercing differently. Sometimes they'll use clamps, sometimes it'll be free-handed. That's something you should ask your piercer, “How do you pierce? Are you free-handing? Are you using clamps?” This will give you a better sense of the experience.
Septums actually tend to heal pretty quickly, too. They typically take around 10 weeks to heal, which is not as long as many other piercings.
Septum piercings are incredible first piercings. They're actually very easy to pierce and very easy to heal. They heal in about three to five months, making them the fastest-healing cartilage piercing on the body. They can be flipped up and hidden immediately after piercing if the jewelry allows for that, so that they don't have to be seen at work or at school, or at home. And should you decide to remove or retire the piercing, they won't leave any noticeable scar on your face, so no one will have any idea that you had anything pierced. So they are a really ideal starter piercing for most people.
However, septums are also one of the piercings we see done incorrectly the most often. And I would say out of most piercings you're considering getting done, it's extremely important to check portfolio photos and really research to make sure you find a piercer who understands how to work with septum piercings correctly. They have a high likelihood of being done too low or too far back. Appropriate placement for a septum is in the septal membrane and alar cartilage, the soft connective tissue at the tip of the nose; otherwise referred to as the sweet spot when it comes to piercing. That sweet spot is typically located high and tight to the front of the nose. So, appropriate septum placement is typically anywhere from 5/16ths to 3/8ths of an inch up and tight to the front of the nostrils on most noses (not every nose, because all bodies are different).
One other factor to consider when getting a septum piercing is whether or not you have a deviated septum. If you tilt your head back and look at your nostrils in the mirror, if there is asymmetry between your nostrils, or if your septum is not straight, but rather curves or zigzags or has a funky shape, you probably have a deviated septum. Deviated septums require a very specialized piercer with experience in deviations in order to perform correctly. People should be looking at portfolios to see examples of both fresh and healed septums on a variety of nose structures and anatomies to ensure that a piercer is able to pierce their septum successfully. If someone is seeing a good and reputable piercer that knows what they're doing with septums, it should be a very easy, very chill three to five-month heal with very minimal aftercare necessary.
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However, septums are also one of the piercings we see done incorrectly the most often. And I would say out of most piercings you're considering getting done, it's extremely important to check portfolio photos and really research to make sure you find a piercer who understands how to work with septum piercings correctly. They have a high likelihood of being done too low or too far back. Appropriate placement for a septum is in the septal membrane and alar cartilage, the soft connective tissue at the tip of the nose; otherwise referred to as the sweet spot when it comes to piercing. That sweet spot is typically located high and tight to the front of the nose. So, appropriate septum placement is typically anywhere from 5/16ths to 3/8ths of an inch up and tight to the front of the nostrils on most noses (not every nose, because all bodies are different).
One other factor to consider when getting a septum piercing is whether or not you have a deviated septum. If you tilt your head back and look at your nostrils in the mirror, if there is asymmetry between your nostrils, or if your septum is not straight, but rather curves or zigzags or has a funky shape, you probably have a deviated septum. Deviated septums require a very specialized piercer with experience in deviations in order to perform correctly. People should be looking at portfolios to see examples of both fresh and healed septums on a variety of nose structures and anatomies to ensure that a piercer is able to pierce their septum successfully. If someone is seeing a good and reputable piercer that knows what they're doing with septums, it should be a very easy, very chill three to five-month heal with very minimal aftercare necessary.
What I love about piercings is that they aren't permanent. I always say tattoos are a marriage and piercings are a mistress. You can move them and you can change them when you want! If you're considering a septum piercing, go for it.
For a septum, look for the thin flesh in between your nostrils. That's where the piercing goes through. If a piercer hits that sweet spot, the healing is easy and the pain is not bad. However, some people like myself—I had my nose broken when I was younger—don't have that sweet spot. Instead, you'd have to pierce through cartilage. You can heal a septum through cartilage, even though a lot of piercers say you can't. I have healed them through cartilage before. But it's more painful and takes a lot more time.
The other thing I'd say is that there are tons of great piercers out there. Make sure you find one. Ask questions when you go to your piercer. If they don't want to answer questions, that to me is a red flag. If they're not patient with you and don't try to help put your mind at ease, they are likely not someone good to work with.
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For a septum, look for the thin flesh in between your nostrils. That's where the piercing goes through. If a piercer hits that sweet spot, the healing is easy and the pain is not bad. However, some people like myself—I had my nose broken when I was younger—don't have that sweet spot. Instead, you'd have to pierce through cartilage. You can heal a septum through cartilage, even though a lot of piercers say you can't. I have healed them through cartilage before. But it's more painful and takes a lot more time.
The other thing I'd say is that there are tons of great piercers out there. Make sure you find one. Ask questions when you go to your piercer. If they don't want to answer questions, that to me is a red flag. If they're not patient with you and don't try to help put your mind at ease, they are likely not someone good to work with.
I love the septum piercing. It's one of the fastest healing, and it's one of the piercings that you can have and hide at the same time. It’s usually pretty safe as it's a soft tissue.
However, if you have allergies, a septum piercing may not be the piercing for you. If you’re constantly sneezing, have a consistent runny nose, or deal with allergies in the morning, healing will take a lot longer and will be a more complicated process.
Additionally, I will also always want to know if a client has a deviated septum, because it’s important to inform them that their piercing may not look straight because of the deviation. There's little things that we can do; for example, we can adjust the jewelry with forceps to make it look straight, but it’s possible that someone with this situation may not like it.
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However, if you have allergies, a septum piercing may not be the piercing for you. If you’re constantly sneezing, have a consistent runny nose, or deal with allergies in the morning, healing will take a lot longer and will be a more complicated process.
Additionally, I will also always want to know if a client has a deviated septum, because it’s important to inform them that their piercing may not look straight because of the deviation. There's little things that we can do; for example, we can adjust the jewelry with forceps to make it look straight, but it’s possible that someone with this situation may not like it.
A septum piercing goes in the sweet spot in between your nostrils in the center part of your nose. Basically, the septum piercing goes through a thin section of connective tissue in that area that has a lot of blood circulation, with edges that are mucous membrane. So, those three elements of thin tissue, high blood flow, and mucous membrane mean that that area heals really quickly. It's also a very easy piercing to get done. A lot of people think that they're more painful than a nostril piercing initially, and then after getting them done, a lot of people find that they're less painful than nostril piercings, and again, they heal easily. My aftercare instructions for them are minimal compared to other piercings, because it's really, really hard not to heal a septum piercing if it's done right.
That said, it's one that a lot of piercers don’t love to do. Even really good piercers can have trouble with them a lot of the time, because getting the piercing to line up straight with the ridges on the inside of your nose, the possibility of potential deviation, and locating that sweet spot can be challenging. However, it’s personally one of my favorite piercings to do. I think they're really easy to do, they're really fun to do, and they're really rewarding. They can be flipped up, so basically, if you start off with a style of jewelry called a circular barbell, which is going to be like a little C-shape with the balls on the end, immediately after getting pierced, you can tuck it into your nose and hide it. So, I think a lot of people get those when they can't have them for work or want to hide them for various reasons. You just want to keep it up for the initial healing, otherwise, the motion from up to down is going to cause complications. Then again, I always recommend checking out safepiercing.org to make sure that you're going to someone who is going to give you a straight septum piercing in the sweet spot and not in a much more painful piercing in the cartilage.
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That said, it's one that a lot of piercers don’t love to do. Even really good piercers can have trouble with them a lot of the time, because getting the piercing to line up straight with the ridges on the inside of your nose, the possibility of potential deviation, and locating that sweet spot can be challenging. However, it’s personally one of my favorite piercings to do. I think they're really easy to do, they're really fun to do, and they're really rewarding. They can be flipped up, so basically, if you start off with a style of jewelry called a circular barbell, which is going to be like a little C-shape with the balls on the end, immediately after getting pierced, you can tuck it into your nose and hide it. So, I think a lot of people get those when they can't have them for work or want to hide them for various reasons. You just want to keep it up for the initial healing, otherwise, the motion from up to down is going to cause complications. Then again, I always recommend checking out safepiercing.org to make sure that you're going to someone who is going to give you a straight septum piercing in the sweet spot and not in a much more painful piercing in the cartilage.
I'd say that most septum piercings fall in the range of $40 to $100. It will depend on what kind of piercing you go with, since some materials are more expensive than others. When I got my septum pierced, it was almost painless, so I wouldn't worry about the pain. It also healed up really quickly for me, like just 6 to 8 weeks, but it could be different for you.
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Septum piercings are awesome! I love that I can hide mine whenever I don’t want people to see it. Anyway, yeah, in terms of pain, it’s a pretty low-pain piercing. For me, it was kind of like a quick pinch that just felt a little sore for a few days. When it comes to long-term healing though, septums are a pain. This piercing took me like 6 months to heal. You really can’t mess with your nose while it’s healing, so that’s something you really need to be conscious of.
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it costed me around $90 but you could definitely get it for cheaper, you just gotta ask prices. the pain isn’t bad at all. it takes six months to heal without moving it. and just spray wound wash on it for those 6 months. if you get any crusties, just gently blow bubbles with the shower water in your hands. people will say to heal w tea tree oil or hazel witch but anything with a good bit of saline and filtered water is considered safe
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Call me crazy, but I can’t stand to see ANYTHING coming out of anyone’s nose! Especially if they are working around food. Disgusting!!
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I think septum piercings are a great piercing to get next if you're trying to explore beyond the "normal" lobe piercing because it's relatively low-pain, heals pretty quickly, and can be easily hidden compared to other piercings. Good luck!
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Is it a problem if i dont wear the piercing 3 hours or so after getting it? I mean, can i get the piercing and a bit later take the jewelery off? Or will it make the healing process a lot longer?
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It can be risky to take out a septum piercing, because there's always a chance that it closes up. You can also re-open the wound or irritate the piercing site, slowing the healing process.
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