I posted on the other thread previously, but I'm chiming in again. Do not use polysporin or any type of antibacterial ointment on a piercing. It even says not to use them on puncture wounds, which is what a piercing is. This is because the ointment can actually trap dirt inside the fistula of the piercing, making your problem much worse. Do not use tea tree oil on a healing piercing either, even if it's diluted. It's still way too harsh, especially for one that's infected. Emu oil is the only oil approved by the Association of Professional Piercers for use on healing piercings. I also recommend having a different piercer look at it for a second opinion, as your jewelry should not have been changed so early since it's infected. You can ask your doctor for antibiotics, but don't take the piercing out until the infection is cleared up or the infection can get trapped inside your nose. Please don't change your jewelry again either as frequent jewelry changes on healing piercings cause more irritation and stress to the forming fistula.

Also don't let this put you off getting piercings in the future! Infections do happen from time to time, even with the best care. Just focus on clearing up the infection and getting that nose healed! Then you won't have to worry as much about infections or irritation. I do recommend titanium jewelry once it's cleared up though as it won't cause any metal allergies. The fact that your piercer is giving outdated advice makes me think she might be selling you cheaper jewelry with higher nickel content than other types. Steel shouldn't be trusted unless you know the grade or if it's from Anatometal, BVLA, Industrial Strength, etc. Good jewelry and quality piercings are pricey ( I paid $120 for two piercings plus basic titanium jewelry), but it's worth it. Definitely ask your piercer where she gets her jewelry and what grade and material it's made from. It'll help rule out a metal allergy. My friend gets boils and infections every time she gets pierced because of the nickel in low quality jewelry.

The piercer looked at my nose and she said it's not rejecting--it's the keloid I need to get of. Let me tell you.. it's pretty damn stubborn! I went on youtube and I watched a video on how to get rid of stubborn bumps and the girl used an aspirin/salt paste. I might try it.

Keloids are pretty rare. Not to say it isn't an actual keloid, but they generally occur if you're predisposed to forming them. I'm going to link to a site by Elayne Angel, one of the industries pioneers. It has care instructions for different types of piercing problems as well as pictures so you can better see the differences between issues. Piercing Troubleshooting

What metal is your jewelry made of? If it's the same material that you have issues with in your ears, try titanium. Otherwise try not to change it if you don't think the type of metal is an issue. Does it get snagged frequently? Is the skin around the piercing dry? Are you able to take ibuprofen or acetaminophen to reduce swelling or tenderness? I know some people have issues with being allergic to some medications, so if you are able to take either of those, it'll help a little bit. Also try doing warm compresses, without salt, to increase circulation and to soothe the tissue. Just use a washcloth or gauze and run it under warm water before placing it over your piercing until the cloth/gauze is no longer warm. Then repeat for a few minutes. This might be good to do after the salt soaks as it'll help make sure all the salt is being flushed out.

I don't think mine is a keloid.... it's probably just a piercing bump that got infected. My jewellery is surgical steel. When I wear surgical steel in my ears, I don't have a problem.

Whatever is on my nose, it's pretty damn stubborn. I'll try an aspirin paste to see if that helps.

Click

It looks like that's likely what it is. See if the aspirin paste helps. If it doesn't, try emu oil. It worked for my lip piercings and for a friend's piercings when they were getting really dry and irritated. Just be aware that once the infection clears up, it'll still be a bit for it to heal so continue to expect crusties for awhile. It looks like it's getting better at least. I'm not a piercer or a medical professional, just someone who tries to give out correct information to dispel myths and make the healing process smoother. If you feel it isn't getting better in a week or so, ask your doctor for antibiotics. If they recommend taking it out, remind them that it will cause an abscess as the piercing is the only source of drainage. Your aftercare is spot on so hopefully it gets better!

I'm sorry, I'm feeling dumb today. Is it a keloid, or a piercing bump?

I'll see how much emu oil is in Canada. If it's too expensive, I won't be able to afford it.

I posted twice. I'm sorry. Can you delete a comment?

I'm sorry, I'm feeling dumb today. Is it a keloid, or a piercing bump?

I'll see how much emu oil is in Canada. If it's too expensive, I won't be able to afford it.

It looks like it's just a bump. Keloids tend to be bigger than the original piercing hole, according to the site I shared with you. Nose piercings tend to get bumps as they heal, sometimes from snagging or other minor irritation, sometimes for no discernible reason at all. So long as you keep the area clean by washing your face regularly and doing the mild salt soaks, it should be fine. Just continue monitoring for signs of infection. Once that goes away, there will still be lymph from the piercing healing that will appear on your jewelry and around the hole itself. This is just your body healing the puncture and nothing to be concerned about. The lymph is what causes the crusties. Just try not to rotate your jewelry, and definitely don't rotate it if there's crusties. From firsthand experience, it stings. Otherwise, it sounds like you're doing everything right.

It's been crusty and I even get crust with blood. It bled earlier. I'm currently sitting here with an aspirin/salt paste.

I'm getting really frustrated. Nothing seems to be working, mind you I only started the aspirin/sea salt mix last night. I watch this one youtube video on stubborn bumps and she mixed aspirin and sanitizer together and her nose bump was almost completely healed in 3 hours :/

I also checked the price of emu oil. It's almost $20 a bottle. I have to save up some money before I buy one to try it out.

Update

salt+aspirin paste is super drying and it'll irritate your piercing more. Aspirin and sanitizer sounds like an AWFUL idea, considering it's not advisable to put alcohol on piercings. Both of those "solutions" may dry up your bump and make it look better for a day or two max, but then it'll come back with a vengeance. I know it's difficult, but I really think your best option is leaving it alone and just letting your body heal itself at its own pace.

I have dry skin around the bump. I just hope it's not scar tissue now

it shouldn't be scar tissue, my ear was NASTY for almost a year and I thought for sure I would have to eventually take the piercing out and end up with a huge scar but you would never know that I had any trouble healing it. it just looks like a cute little piercing now.

That made me feel better. I was really mad because it seriously looks like scar tissue :/

healing piercings is really stressful! there were definitely a lot of days where I wanted to give up because it looked so bad that I didn't think it would ever heal, but it worked out in the end! I'm sure it's even more stressful as a nose piercing since it's more visible than a forward helix piercing, but unfortunately you just have to be patient with it and expect it to pretend to heal but then get crusty again and go through a few cycles of that.

I've had my nostril pierced for 10 months now, and I had a few bumps (which a piercer identified as a clogged pore) by it within the last few months. Honestly leaving it alone, washing your piercing with warm water in the shower, don't mix & match so many treatments, and just be patient will be your best bet to make the healing process go by smoothly and stop/reduce the irritation. Don't freak out/pick at it so much!

The bad thing about piercings is their lack of cooperation when it comes to healing. It's basically you having to suffer for a few months to get the piercing in control and then it's like none of that even happened (since now it never gets infected anymore, rarely if ever). I hope all goes well with your piercing. Try to keep with it and see how it goes, or you can take it out once you see there's no bump and not chance it again. Good luck to you.

Edit: I just saw your picture. Is there anyway for you to not use the hoop piercing? Those aren't good to have when you first get your piercing. It's good to wait at least 6-8 months before putting in a hoop piercing. Those one's tend to move around more and are just harder to maintain. It's easier to clean a stud in my opinion. Also, I suggest maybe going to a different piercer to ask their opinion on what you should do. It's always good to get a second opinion on this.

If the skin is dry around your piercing, cut down on your treatments. Sanitizer shouldn't go anywhere near a piercing.Your best bet is to leave it alone except for cleaning once a day with a salt soak, with a little less salt than usual. Do this right before a warm shower or right before you do a warm compress. It's going to be crusty no matter what at this point due to healing so don't freak out! My bridge is cycling through periods of crustiness as we speak. It's what piercings just kinda do to heal. Just be patient.