Last Updated on April 9, 2022
Almost every decision to get a piercing is driven by impulse. The end result isn’t always satisfactory, and you wish to alter it. So can a piercing hole be reduced or not?
Fortunately, shrinking a piercing hole isn’t difficult at all. Unless the piercing hole is too old or enormous, you will require surgery.
How to Shrink Nose Piercing Hole?
There are several ways to make your nose piercing hole smaller. Let’s get right into it and talk about the various gauge sizes, but first, let’s learn a little bit about them.
What is a Gauge Size?
The diameter of the gauge is the most important thing to consider when getting a piercing. It influences how big your piercing hole will be. The gauge size is the thickness of a piece of jewelry.
The size of a jewelry is measured in gauge. The most popular sizes range from 14G to 24G, with 14 being the thickest and 24 being the thinnest.
Most nose piercings are done with an 18G needle shifted to a 20G jewelry piece after healing.
So, what can you do with the gauge size to reduce your nose piercing hole? Isn’t it likely that you would downsize it? So let’s have a look at how this may be done.
The simplest way to reduce the size of your piercing hole is to change the gauze.
Downsize the Gauge
A nose piercing is generally done with an 18G, which is suitable for the majority of people. If it doesn’t suit you and you want to reduce your piercing hole, though, you may remove your first piece of jewelry.
Then replace it with a gauge 20 nose ring. This will help your skin to heal and form new cells around the empty space caused by the smaller gauge. The gauge 20 jewelry is beautiful, and downsizing the gauge to 20 will most certainly be a wise decision.
Smallest Gauge
If 20g still does not satisfy you, you may proceed to the tiniest nose piercing gauge, 22G. The hole will shrink as new skin grows around it and there you have it! Your nose piercing hole has shrunk as a result of this.
The 22G is a rather limited gauge size. It’s mostly useful for individuals with extremely tiny noses. A 20G is the ideal choice for most people’s noses.
How Long Does It Take For A Nose Piercing To Get Smaller?
The healing process varies from person to person. We can’t say exactly how long it will take your nose piercing to shrink. As a result, we can’t accurately predict how long it will take for your piercing hole to mend.
The amount of time it takes for a nose piercing to heal and close varies, however there are certain typical healing and closing periods for nose piercings. If your nose piercing is less than six months old, it will shrink or close up within a day or two. The inner side of your nose piercing hole quickly diminishes in size.
How Do You Close A Nose Piercing Hole?
If you want to permanently close a nose piercing hole, all you have to do is remove the jewelry from the piercing hole and wait a few days. Your piercing will naturally close up on its own.
Formation of Fistula
When your nose is pierced, the body’s healing mechanism produces a fistula. This fistula might take up to a year to mend fully. If the jewelry is taken out while it is healing, the chance of your piercing hole closing almost immediately goes up.
The normal closing time for nasal piercings is anywhere from 1 to 6 weeks, depending on the type and size of your piercing. However, if your piercing is fresh and not fully healed, it will close much faster than other piercings. For some individuals, it might complete in a few hours or even minutes.
Healing Time
Healing time and mechanism are different for each person. It also depends on the patient’s age as well as his or her immune function. Younger individuals with a robust immune system and more flexible skin have a quicker healing response.
In the case of older piercings, it may take somewhat longer for them to heal because of their reduced healing abilities.
Can Surgery Close a Nose Piercing Hole?
If you wish to have your nose piercings seal, they do not need much effort. They heal quickly on their own as we discussed earlier. Surgery is really not necessary.
However, in exceptional situations, such as for individuals with very old piercings or piercing holes that are larger than usual, you may need minor surgical procedures to fully close your piercing.
Wondering when can you change your nose piercing? Read our guide.
