Snake Bites Piercing – Pain, Healing, Infection, Aftercare

Snake Bites Piercing is a most famous type of body piercing, which can be performed on the lip, eye brows, tongue, or cheeks.  The most common area of preforming snake bites piercing is lip.  It is mostly popular in young men and women to look more beautiful and attractive. The piercing is performed on two places one on either side of lower lips. The origin of snake bite piercing is from some aboriginal tribes of Australia and African cultures. Snake bite piercing is also associated with bisexual or lesbians. There are many types of jewelries that people can use to look beautiful.

Generally, lip piercing takes around 1-3 months to heal completely but snake bite piercing heals faster than other type of piercing. However, it requires extensive care as mouth contains many bacteria and they can develop any type of infection in the mouth. It is recommended to visit a professional piercer for snake bite body piercing as it needs a person who has experience, knowledge and skills to perform body piercing. The piercer should use infection free environment to reduce the chances of infection and has a certificate to perform body piercing.

Snake Bites Piercing Procedure

The procedure of Snake bites piercing include

• Firstly, the professional mark the location on which piercing to be done. It is important to keep in mind that marks covers the same distance from the center of the lip and should be on the same line.
• Before the starting, the professional piercer will clean the inner and outer surface of the lip with an antiseptic solution.
• The entire piercing instrument used in the procedure should be washed and sterilized properly.
• The professional piercer uses gloves in whole process to prevent from any bacterial infection.
• A clamp is used to hold the lip into position and to help in reducing the pain.
• The professional piercer inserts the needle on the marked area and then place relevant jewelry.
• Same procedure is followed for other marked area.
• Any kind of bleeding will be wiped away and put an anti-bacterial ointment on it.

The swelling on the piercing is normal and goes down within the first week of the procedure. Ice cubes, ice cream, and frozen food such as yoghurt are helpful in reliving the swelling. Alternatively, medicines such as ibuprofen and acetaminophen are also useful in relieving pain and swelling.

Healing Time For Snake Bites Piercing

The minimum time for healing needs 6-8 weeks after which a person can change jewelry. It is also important to put jewelry in the pierced area otherwise it will be closed automatically. Proper care help to heal the piercing but complete healing can takes 6-12 months. It is also possible that during healing time redness, tenderness, swelling, or yellow or whitish discharge can be experienced by the pierced person. It is good to wash mouth with saline solution, twice in a day and use relevant mouthwash after every meal.

Read more on Body Piercing Infection

Pain level In Snake Bites Piercing

Snake bite piercing is a painful procedure and develop lot of pain. Due to severe pain, it is advised to go for one at a time.  Although, pain level depends on person to person but it can worsen because of

• Use of wrong jewelry
• Trauma
• Infections
• Improper aftercare

It is recommended to consult the professional piercer, if there is increase in pain.

Factors Affecting Snake Bites Piercing

The factors affecting snake bite piercing include

• Piercer Skills and Experience – it is highly desirable to consult a piercer who has knowledge, experience, skills and certificate to perform piercing. A certified piercer charges more but has authenticity.
• Jewelry Type – the type of jewelry is also important to make piercing successful. A good quality jewelry that does not cause any infection is desirable to complete the procedure. Although, good quality jewelry is bit expensive but save you from many problems.
• Geographical Area – it has seen that rural areas charge more for snake bite piercing then urban areas. But sometimes, studios that provide high quality services in urban areas also charge more for piercing.
• Instruments and Medications – it is good to use sterilized instruments and take medication to avoid pain and infections.

Risks Associated With Snake Bite Piercing

The risks associated with snake bite piercing include

• Damage or scratch the teeth or gum
• Tooth decay or Gum Infection
• Enamel erosion
• Tooth fracture
• Gum irritations

Jewelry For Snake Bites Piercing

A variety of marvelous jewelry is available for snake bite piercing. Ball closure rings, labret studs, body spirals, circular barbells, or smooth segments ring are some of the types of jewelry that are used widely all over the world. Normally, people like to wear captive beaded ring that looks like a snake fangs. Clear ball rings or stud are used to hide the piercing or some people use the skin color jewelry to avoid other people notice their piercing.

The correct width of the hoop is important while choosing jewelry as it provides enough space for cleaning and avoids possibility of swelling. Generally, professional piercers recommend 16 to 14 gauges as starter jewelry.

Precaution After Snake Bites Piercing

It is important to understand and follow the aftercare instructions provided by the professional piercer.  Some precautions to take care piercing include

• Clean Mouth Regularly – Brush teeth and floss, especially after every meal.  Cleaning helps to avoid accumulation of the food between tongue and teeth. These food particles attract bacteria and develop infection. Using high quality mouthwash is highly recommended to rinse mouth. Do not use a mouthwash that contains alcohol.
• Always Clean Inside and Outside Of The Jewelry and Piercing – It is recommended to clean the piercing after shower once or twice a day. A mild anti-bacterial soap or a saline solution of sea salt with warm water is best to clean the outside portion of the jewelry.  Use a cotton ball dipped in the solution to clean the dirt and crusting on the snake bite piercing. Also remember that over cleaning may cause delay in healing process.
• Eat Food Carefully and Slowly – It is recommended to eat cool and soft food such as ice cream, soup, or yoghurt during the healing process. Such kind of food is highly helpful in smoothening and relieving the pain and swelling. It is also advised to cut or sLice food into small pieces and place them directly on the molars to avoid hurting the piercing.
• Reduce The Swelling and Other Problems – It is recommended to place some ice chips to avoid any kind of swelling but over usage of these ice chips in the mouth may cause a burning effect. Painkillers such as ibuprofen and acetaminophen are also used to reduce the pain.
• Avoid Touching Piercing With Dirty Hands – It is recommended to wash hands before touching piercing as dirty hands contains many bacteria and other germs that develop infection. Touch piercing only to clean them.
• Avoid Oral Sex – It is recommended to avoid oral sex, kissing to decrease the chances of infection. Mouth kissing may introduce new bacteria into the mouth and causes infection.
• Avoid Alcohol, Smoking, or Eating Certain Food – It is also recommended to avoid alcohol, caffeine, tobacco, spicy foods, sticky foods such as gum or candy and chewing non-food items. Chewing gums or candy can stick on the jewelry and removing them from pierced area may cause injury, bleeding, chances of infection or severe pain.
• Avoid Using Hot Tubs or Public Swimming Pools – It is advised to avoid using water bodies such as hot tubs, public swimming pools, and other water bodies that are used by many people to avoid getting infection. These areas are full of bacteria and increase the infection risk.
• Avoid Changing Jewelry During The Initial Healing Process – It is advised to avoid changing the jewelry during the healing period. It can damage the healed tissues and may cause new wound. Use of long jewelry is good to deal with swelling during the initial healing period.  It is recommended to use a service of a professional piercer to change jewelry during this period.
• Avoid Sharing Food, Drinks, Utensils and Other Personal Things – sharing all those things only increase the risk of infection. Other person may not clean hands as you can and spread infection. Using the same plate, glass or spoon can cause infection. Drinking fluids from same glass is also cause infection. A person should avoid all these possibilities to minimize the infection effect.

Snake bite piercing is a stylish and fashionable trend among young people regardless of their culture or sexual orientation. It is important to consider first about what you want with piercing and choose an established studio with experienced piercers to avoid problems. A small mistake can give an asymmetrical bite piercing. Poor after care may develop infection and it is normal to experience some problems during initial healing period. However, it is advised to visit a doctor, if the swelling, infection or pain persists. The doctor will examine the piercing and provide required treatment as per the problem.