Updated on January 2nd, 2022, to add more information.
On May 18th, 2019, I finally took the dive and got my septum piercing done. I had been thinking about getting my nose pierced for years and years, but I felt it was a big commitment. As someone who travels so much, I didn’t want to deal with aftercare while in another country, but May seemed like a great time with not many events in the horizons. Before getting a septum piercing, I did do some research and read loads of posts about this specific nose ring, but I do feel that there were many aspects that just were not touched on.
Is a Septum Piercing Painful?
When it comes to getting your septum pierced, the very worst and most painful thing is the scissor device that is used like a stencil to guide the needle in. This metal device does pinch a lot and is quite painful – for me, it was more painful then that actual needle that went into my nose.
After your piercer picks a ring for you, normally a bar or horseshoe depending on if you want to hide the piercing, they line up this device into your nose before inserting the needle, which has a plastic bit of straw that will keep the hole filled. Once this is done, the plastic shell will be removed and replaced with your ring.
You will cry during this. There is something about the nerves within your nose that make you cry. I started tearing up as soon as the metal device was inserted, but what I wasn’t prepared for was the amount of blood. When getting your ears pierced, I didn’t actually bleed a lot, but my nose did. Once the ring is in and I was cleaned up, things were pretty numb and good!
Do Septum Piercings affect Breathing?
While your septum piercing is healing, it will affect your breathing the most. As your nose and nostrils are swollen right after you get the piercing, the passage in your airway is restricted. This is only temporary and does not, in any way, completely cut off your breathing. The piercing itself is an obstruction of your nose, which does limit your breathing a bit, but unless you are putting huge, heavy piercings on the end of your nose, this is something you won’t notice and it will not play any sort of role in your day to day life after your piercing.
Healing Times & After Care
The septum piercing itself takes ages to heal, a whole 6 to 8 months to fully heal, though you can change out the ring at the 6 to 8 week mark. Pain and swelling is basically gone after 3 weeks.
During this healing time, but especially at the start of it, you’ll need to clean your nose often. This looks like one of two things; either taking small cups of warm salt water and putting them up to your nose, blowing bubbles for one minute or taking cotton balls with warm salt water on it and pressing it to the insides of your nose for about a minute. Doing these actions will pull blood and snot out of your nose and clean your piercing, as well as help the healing process go smoothly.
It’s pretty important to not move your ring around much during the first few weeks of healing. Moving your ring will result in blood and pain to your nose, as well as harm your healing time. The ring will move on it’s own, being off center, but you need to just leave it be. If you must move it, it’s important to do your after care cleaning first, as it will likely soften and remove any dried gunk around the holes in your nose, making it easier to move. If you don’t, you’ll end up bleeding and harming the healing process.
Catching Your Septum Piercing On Everything
The septum piercing is one that is in the center of your face. It’s hanging off of your nose, so you will be catching it on stuff. Catching on clothing happened to me more often then catching it on my pillow, but both hurt equally. What also happens, especially at the start of getting your piercing put in, is your brain thinking you need to pull it out of your nose. I have had my septum piercing for nearly 4 months at this point and just the other day I pulled at it suddenly, resulting in a good amount of pain coursing through my nose.
Catching your septum piercing on various things is going to happen, especially if you like sleeping on pillows or kissing other people, but this pain does go away after a while. At the 4 months mark, I still get sore from time to time after catching it again or a stuffy nose. At the 6 month mark, I experienced no pain at all.
Colds, Crying, Nose Running
Speaking of stuffy noses, getting sick might happen within the long healing time. If you, like me, blow your nose often, you’ll likely find your nose sore. This isn’t as bad as the initial amount of pain, but it’s still there and worth considering. I don’t have allergies that cause my nose to run, but sometimes squeezing the tip of my nose to blow it will just result in so much pain. I started to learn to be a bit more gentle in blowing my nose, taking more time to do it, which results in a cleaner piercing and less pain. When you do have a stuffy nose or lots of snot, there is a chance that it will end up on your ring. You can easily wash the ring in your nose by doing your after care cleaning or by taking the piercing out and cleaning it with solution.
I did not end up with an infection, due to the level of after care I took when it came to keeping my nose clean. Signs of infection often include a copper taste in your mouth, which I have not experienced, but it doesn’t sound very good.
Hiding your Septum Piercing
There are many reasons you might want to hide your septum piercing. When I got mine done, I was a full adult who does not have parents, a job that would care, or any reason to not show it off. When I got my septum pierced, I expressed that I would not be hiding it, and as a result did get a bigger ring to show off! If you are planning on hiding your septum piercing, you should tell your piercer before they have picked the ring for you, that way they can advise you on a ring that would be easy to tuck up. You will be hiding your septum piercing by flipping your piercing, so that the bull ring piercing is up inside your nose. This is a bit painful to do when your nose is freshly pierced, but you can do so two to three times a day, without it affected your healing time. You should ensure that there isn’t a build up of gunk around your ring before you flip it up. You may want to dampen a towel, hold it a bit inside your nose, to loosen anything there before flipping your ring up.
Changing Your Ring
Yesterday, I changed my ring for the first time! I switched out the traditional horse shoe ring for a crown ring. Horse shoe rings, you see, are a bit more than half circles, with two balls or spikes at either side. Some can be pushed up into your nose and hidden, however mine could not as I picked a long one, as mentioned above. To insert horse shoe rings into your septum piercing, you’ll just remove one of the balls and slide it in. It’s simple and straight forward.
I switched over to a crown ring, which is almost like a badge clip and is a bit more complex to put in. When it came to removing my horse shoe ring, I struggled to get the circles screwed off, but once they were, could easily slip the ring out. From there, I took the pin end of my new ring and ran it slowly up and down the inside of my nose until it caught the hole. I softly pushed it in, and then took on the challenge of clipping it. Unlike horse shoe rings, which can be closed outside of your nose, crowns need to be clipped inside your nose. This results in a lot of pushing on your nose and moving the ring around to uncomfortable places in hopes of not catching it on your skin.
But, once you do get your crown ring in, it’s in! And it’s probably staying as you shouldn’t really change your septum piercing all that often. I’m quite happy with my ring and really enjoy the proportions on my face. This piercing is literally my favorite body modification at the moment. After making the decision and taking the time to make sure the piercing healed, I am more than happy with the result.
I’m wanting to get my septum pierced tomorrow, this was SO helpful to read beforehand. thank you!
I am so glad! I hope that you love your new piercing. 🙂
How painful is this piercing?
Not to bad, but if you keep tapping your nose for like the week after, it’s paintful.
I got mine on the 15 of November 2020 and would like to switch it just not sure how and kind of scared
Did you get one of the ones with a little ball that you can twist off? Is your nose still sore when you lightly touch or press on the tip of your nose?
Hello! My name is may and I’m 16 I was wondering if it’s a smart idea to even consider getting a septum as my first piercing?
I don’t like the idea of getting my ears pierced at all, but I’ve wanted a septum for a while so would it actually be better to wait till I’m possibly ready for an ear piercing to get a feel of it or just go for it?
Ps. sorry for the long comment 😅
No worries at all! I would totally get your septum as your first piercing. I found my septum far easier to take care of then my ears, which got infected quite quickly. I also found that after the healing process (which is a bit longer than your ears to be honest) you can get nose rings that hide in your nose or are quite small, so you can still take them out for interviews or anything important too. You don’t need to do that with earrings as they are more commonly acceptable. Worse case though, you can always just remove the nose ring if you don’t like it and let the holes close up! My ears never closed after getting them pierced. Hope you end up getting a piercing you like!
Thank you heaps!
This really helps relax my nerves about getting a septum piercing in the near future 😀
Glad that it does!
Hey in I got mine pierced and it doesn’t hurt as much as u think it does u always think it’s Gunna hurt more than u think because of your anxiety and that but your adrenaline sorta stops the pain it just feels like a little prick but it’s different for everyone else I’ve had my ears pierced on both sides 2 on each side I want another ear piercing idk why people say it’s like an ear piercing because it’s nothing like an ear piercing
I would like to get a septum piercing, but I’m not very good with pain. I have 4 piercings in my ears and I loved them. I didn’tfeel any pain when I got them, easy no worries! But I would like to know how much pain it is to get my septum?
SO, getting the piercing did not hurt, but the weird scissor looking thing pinched a bit, which did hurt the most during the process. Also, when touching your noise for the first few weeks, as it heals, it hurts (obvs).
Can I also use a clip on septum ring if I got my septum pierced?
You CAN, but it would sit either behind or in front of your septum ring if your ring is in. You would need to wait until your nose completely heals, or it will hurt a lot to have a clip in. And if you have a clip in with out your piercing in, it can slip into the holes, which is painful to get out sometimes.
I have my belly button pierced and was wondering if the aftercare is similar to that, I mean it sounds like it is but I had some migration on my belly button ring. Is that possible for a septum as well?
When it comes to septum piercings, if you have migration, your nose will reject the jewellery, so you shouldn’t have any really!
Hi! I’m going to get my septum pierced in a few weeks and I was wondering if you have any advice on picking a good piercing shop. I have to do it online so I’m not exactly sure how to tell if the shop is good or not.
I went to my local tattoo parlor. I would just ensure that they clean the needle before it goes in, or open a new one. It is important to pick one you feel comfortable in, and one that does regular piercings. Good luck!
hi, i was wondering about when you get your septum pierced if you can get a circle ring or beaded ring as starter jewelry or does it have to be the horseshoe?
Hey! You can ask your piercer. They tend to do the horseshoe as it’s very easy to take out – where as a circle ring or beaded ring can be hard to take out, causing you to pull on the new hole in your face, which can cause it to not heal properly.
Hey would you recommend someone with asthma get this piercing?
It does not effect breathing at all.
Hi! I got my septum piercing two weeks ago and daily there’s virtually no pain. I clean it well and make sure all the crusties are off. The issue is that I babysit a one year old every day and sometime he headbutts me by mistake. This usually hurts but with the piercing is makes me really worried. After I get hit in the most my piercing hurts for an hour or so. Will this lead to tearing or an issue in the piercing?! I’m super worried.
I’d be very careful about being headbutted and having the ring pulled about. It will likely make your healing time take longer, but should be okay if it’s not too much of a knock. Obvs it will hurt while it’s still healing too!
hey, im 15 and have parents who arent sure about this piercing. my mom suggested i print out a thing for my dad, and these comments and answers have been helpful and so has this article in general. tysm for helping:)
Best of luck! 🙂 Hope your dad agrees.
wow you’re super good at keeping up with comments!!
i’m taking some days off this week and i’m thinking about finally getting this piercing — maybe tomorrow since my local tattoo/piercing parlor takes walk-ins. if anything i’m worried about the length of after care and hair getting caught on the piercing.
did showering/washing your face change at all after getting your septum pierced?
thanks so much for the information 🙂
It did not change how I showered or washed my face, apart from – while it was healing, I would be more gentle when touching my nose, and I would take care to wash any sort of gunk from around the piercing hole in my nose (like use a soft washcloth with a bit of warm water if there was gunk stuck in around my nose ring)
Hey! I’m thinking of getting my septum pierced, but my parents are worried that I won’t like it later in life and will want to take it out (I don’t think that will happen) but will it leave a noticeable scar or be an issue if I were to take it out 10 years down the road?
Because the hole is literally inside your nose, if you take it out (and for some reason it doesn’t close up – which it likely will if you keep your ring out for a long time) then you will never see or notice the hole ever again anyway (as it’s inside your nose)
Hey I’ve had my septum pierced for little over two weeks now and one of my nostril is swollen is this normal???
No that is not. It sounds like an infection – you should have your peircer give advice.
Hi so I’m about to turn 16 in a month, and my family wants to take me to get another piercing because last year for my 15th I got just a regular nose piercing (and I already had my ears pierced). I want to eventually have 3 nose piercings (the one I have, one on the opposite side, and a septum), but im nervous to get my septum done. I have an okay pain tolerance, but I was doing some research and things about my nose could collapse and scary things like that could happen. After I saw that I’m so nervous about getting it done, but I really want to. I dont want anything to go wrong with my piercing, but I don’t know how likely it is. Also, I’m really REALLY scared of needles so if you’ve had like the regular nose piercing done too can you tell me if the needle is about the same size or bigger (I’m assuming bigger) and which hurt more? My parents used to not want me to get one but now that they will allow me (I would have done it myself if they didn’t) if it’s likely to go wrong or something they’re gonna be like ‘I told you so’ LOL
Hey,
Oh no! It is not at all likley that your nose will collapse or anything like that if you are getting it done at a licensed peircer (as apposed to just forcing something into your nose) they will know and let you know ahead of time if there is any sort of issues!
The needle used on me was actually quite small, but had a plastic bit on it, which is what went into my nose after the needle. It’s not very big and you cannot see it. Best of luck, and I am sure it will all turn out well!
Also my hair gets wrapped inside my nose piercing anyways so would that affect the septum piercing in any way?
Your other peircing shouldn’t effect your septum! And your hair will likely not effect it unless your hair goes inside your nose!
Hi, will a septum look good on a guy who would want to dress classy sometimes and otherwise casual, or in college to become a surgeon.
Hey! Yeah a septum looks good on everyone tbh! You can purchase different rings – some more casual, some more classy, some that hide completely in your nose. 🙂
I am 14 and i did my piercing on my own i watched youtube videos before hand but my piercing sometimes rubs the bone in the middle of my nose should i take it out?
You should never do piercings on your own. You should go to a licensed piercer and ask them about it – it does sound incorrect and longterm that can lead to health issues!
Hey
Do you think it is a bad idea to get it at my 14th birthday? I’m a bit worried it’s too early to get a septum piercing…
Lol I know this is months later but I got mine done in may for my 14th and I think it is fine :,) I mean I did get it- lol however I think it looks fine with the way it is for the age your face looks (this is purely me looking with myself and a few other kids at school who’ve gotten it done)
Hi, I wanted to ask if you can feel the piercing once the pain fades. Do you forget about the feeling or is there a constant feeling of having a piercing? Are there also different placements on the nose? I also sneeze a lot, is that something I should consider?
Hi! Well, I’m not asking any questions for myself since I already have a septum piercing and know how it is…. I’m curious about how thick the septum piercing can be, you see the one I have I went to a tattoo shop to get and it had thin rings in different colors and end pieces. So I picked a spike type end. Well, there’s this creepy guy at my work, he got a big, thick, “piercing” like mine but thicker and with these huge balls on the end. Honestly I think it’s fake, but idk since the ones from the selection were small and thin I didn’t know if you could get something that big from the start. Plus when I asked a question about it he was saying weird stuff and acting nervous suddenly. He was constantly reaching up and touching it and from my own experience I know it hurts so freaking bad to touch when it’s new but he was saying that his didn’t hurt… it was just weird to me. But maybe it’s just me, I looked up fake septum piercings and the first picture that popped up looked like his. Now he’s trying to copy me and my sister’s helix piercings 🙄😒 he outright asked what kind of piercings they were so he could get the same ones, super weird and creepy.
You cannot start with a huge one, it will pull and cause issues. You can work up to it, by stretching the hole, using thicker rings after it heals and then once that stretch heals, doing a slightly thicker ring, etc. If it’s too heavy right at the start, you will see stretching, damage, and it will not heal properly. If it’s really big, there is a chance it can rip out.
When the pain faded I don’t really notice it anymore, it’s not in my way or anything. The easiest way for me to clean my nose is to twist a napkin or something and lightly brush it around my nose. I use a Q tip to clean my piercing and everything is fine
Very helpful, thanks a lot.
Hi My name is Annastasia and i’m only 13 but I really want to get my septum piercing if my parents are OK with it. do you think its easy to take care of? also I think i’m going to get made fun of for it
Hey! I did not find it hard to take care of at all – though you will need to make sure that the ring you get is not one you are allergic too, especially if you have not put on different metals before. I think that teenagers make fun of teenagers for anything – but really if you think you look good, then that’s all that matters!
Hey! I’m 18, and considering getting a septum piercing sometime soon. All I’ve done is regular earlobe piercings thus far. Did you have any issues with your piercing smelling bad during or after healing? If so, how bad was it? I’ve seen people complain about it before, and I’m a little sensitive to smells, so I figured I’d try and get a sense for it. Also, can you leave the ring out for long periods once it’s healed, or should you mostly keep it in? How often did you have to clean it during vs after healing? Thanks a bunch for writing about this 🙂
Mine smelled like blood, when it was healing / bleeding, but I kept it really clean so otherwise it didn’t smell like rot or anything. It wasn’t too bad unless it was actively bleeding. During healing, I cleaned it probably once a day, just to get the gunk off around the piercing so that it healed well, using a warm, wet wash cloth. Now, I probably actively clean my nose ring when I have a runny nose, like every day, and otherwise when needed / every few months when I change the ring. You are meant to primarily keep your ring in, even after it heals, as it can close easily – but you can get smaller rings that hide in your nose too.
I got my septum piercing January 2 2024 and now it’s swollen and the jewelry won’t stay down is that normal it didn’t do it the first day
That is not normal! I would go back to the person that did your piercing, so they can ensure that you didn’t get an infection and that the jewelry isn’t causing an allergic reaction. It might be that you pulled on your nose a few times or that the jewelry is causing an allergic reaction, but only someone in person could help you.
I’ve been wanting a septum piercing for a really long time and i might be able to get it sometimes this year! I found out that i have allergic rhinitis (literally just rlly bad hay fever) and my doctor said he wouldn’t recommend i get it as it would probably not be good for my breathing (my breathing is fine i just get runny nose all the time) and i was just wondering would it be ok for me to get it like would it mess with my nose or anything?
So I am not sure what allergic rhinitis is really, but as someone who has had colds while having a nose ring, it’s not very nice. Your nose ring gets all gunked up with snot, it’s more sore because you will keep pulling on it when blowing your nose, if the piercing is heavy, it’s a lot on your nose. You should always go with your doctor’s recomendation – as your illness might mess with the healing process. I would try a fake nose ring and see if it’s a pain / a lot to deal with, as like a trial.
Tysm! Allergic rhinitis is basically just severe hayfever. btw