This Influencer Is Warning Against Sleeping With Plastic Earring Backs

Do you sleep with your jewelry on? Some people definitely do prefer to sleep with their jewelry on, and it can be a matter of convenience or necessity. There are even some sleep trackers out there that double as stylish rings.

Others, however, prefer to sleep without anything on their necks, arms, ankles, fingers, or ears while they hit the hay. While it’s not necessarily always dangerous to sleep with jewelry on, there are certain circumstances that can make sleeping with jewelry pretty dangerous.

Recently, TikToker Amber Rose (@amber.guttilla) made a video sharing her experience after wearing plastic earring backs for an extended period of time. As it turns out, wearing these plastic earring backs over a long time can have some pretty gross and scary consequences. (1)

If you’re unfamiliar, plastic earring backs are a squishy, silicone alternative to metal earring backs, and usually come with new earrings. These earring backs can work great in a pinch if you’ve lost other earring backs, and some people even prefer to use the plastic option over the metal.

Read on if you’re curious about why you shouldn’t sleep with plastic earring backs and if it’s okay to sleep with jewelry on.

Why Shouldn’t You Sleep With Plastic Earring Backs On?

According to Amber’s TikTok, she had to have the plastic earring backs that she was wearing professionally removed, after she attempted to remove them herself and was unable to do so. She opens her video, which has garnered 6.9 million views and over 590,000 likes on the platform, saying “if you have earrings, you might want to know this, cause I did not know this and it almost landed me in the hospital.” (1)

Amber goes on to share that she wound up using the plastic earring backs after she was unable to get flat-back earring backs on her piercing. She left them on for “a month or two” and when she went to switch her earrings, she could not remove the backing.

Ultimately, Amber visited a piercing shop to get her jewelry professionally removed, and while she was there she learned that those plastic earring backs can absorb “oils, grease from your hair, sweat, [and] makeup.” As it turns out, this gunk winds up creating a sort of adhesive, which makes it difficult to safely remove the earring. (1)

Thankfully, Amber was able to get the earrings removed, saying that the process was hard for the technician who removed her earrings, and a bit painful for her. In an exclusive interview with Well+Good, Amber shared that “[she] looked at what was pried out, and the silicone was yellow,” Amber also told the publication that “[she] had no clue that silicone was porous and genuinely felt blindsided once [she] learned that they shouldn’t be worn regularly.” (2)

Amber wraps up her video saying that, “those little clear fasteners are really not meant to be used in your earrings for more than like a night or two, so don’t leave them on too long. Otherwise those just may become your new permanent earrings.”

Is It Okay To Sleep With Jewelry On?

Ultimately, it’s probably a pretty good idea to ditch your jewelry before you head to bed each night. Dr. Marisa Garshick told Well+Good that it’s generally a pretty good idea to remove your jewelry before sleeping. She says that “Removing them regularly, if not daily, can allow you to clean around the piercing area thoroughly and also help relieve tension from the ear if you wear drop earrings or hoops.” (2)

However, there are some types of jewelry that you cannot remove, such as fresh piercings and permanent jewelry. You can use piercing pillows to sleep safely and comfortably with fresh ear piercings, and as long as you keep the area around permanent jewelry clean, you should be in the clear.

What Are “Piercing Pillows,” and Why Are They Everywhere Right Now?

Gutilla, Amber. October 11, 2024. https://www.tiktok.com/@amber.guttilla/video/7424289724744879391?embed_source=121374463%2C121468991%2C121439635%2C121433650%2C121404359%2C121351166%2C121331973%2C120811592%2C120810756%3Bnull%3Bembed_blank&refer=embed&referer_url=www.wellandgood.com%2F%3Fp%3D1203966%26preview_id%3D1203966%26preview_nonce%3D083e1e5e01%26_thumbnail_id%3D1204036%26preview%3Dtrue&referer_video_id=7424289724744879391
Simeon, Aimee. Why you shouldn’t sleep in clear earring backs, according to this viral TikTok. Well+Good. October 11, 2024. https://www.wellandgood.com/tiktok-sleeping-in-clear-silicone-earring-backs-risks-danger/