I received a message from a man who abandoned his new Prince Albert (PA) piercing due to symptoms of metal reaction and wanted to get repierced: 

Hi Ms Elayne Angel,

I am sorry to bother you but I have a piercing question and I am getting such a wide variety of answers; I thought I'd go to the source.

I had a PA and had a bad metal reaction and had to remove it after 5 1/2 weeks. I plan to get it redone but was wondering what steps to take to get ready for the re-piercing and how long I should wait. 

The answers have varied from 2 weeks to 3-4 months. 

I was just wanting to clear up the confusion. 

Thank you for your time and I appreciate all you have contributed to the art of body modification. I have your book and it is a great book.

By chance are you planning any trips to the Charlotte NC area anytime soon?

Thanks in advance,

M.

My response:     

Hi M.

Thanks for the positive feedback about my book; I really appreciate it and I'm glad to hear your opinion about it.

Well, the "confusion" can be attributed to the fact that it really depends on your body and how quickly you recover from the effects of the first piercing and the reaction you experienced. I have a number of questions for you and it is important to find out exactly what went wrong the first time before having the piercing redone. When you repierce, you must do something different or you can expect the same problematic results.

What type of metal did you use? Who did the piercing; was it a professional? Was the piercer a member of the Association of Professional Piercers? We all use implant grade materials for initial piercings. Metal reactions are almost unheard of when high-quality implant grade materials are used. Can you tell me what the reaction looked like? Was is just right around the piercing, or did it cover a wider area? Sometimes care products can cause a skin reaction that is misconstrued as a metal sensitivity. Can you tell me what product(s) you used for aftercare? How long was the jewelry in place by the time you experienced the problem? Do you have any photos to share? It is very difficult to evaluate your situation accurately without seeing the problem.

I think 2 weeks is too soon, but I don't think it is necessary to wait as long as 3-4 months. I'd say 4-6 weeks is a more realistic time to wait. Your body should have had ample time to clear the problem and completely normalize. If you don't feel that the area has totally settled and returned to normal after that period, then you should continue to wait until it has. 

I pierce in Atlanta periodically. If you would like to be notified when I make travel plans, please sign up for my newsletter in the box on the right upper corner of my website: http://piercingbible.com It is an "opt-in" list, so I can't add you myself.