5 Terrible Things Nobody Tells You About Getting Tattoos

People get tattoos for various reasons. Some get inked to express themselves, while others do it as a form of art. There are those who get tattooed to preserve memories or pay tribute to their loved ones, too. Whatever the reason may be, this form of skin art is definitely a fascinating subject.

For most people, getting a tattoo is a very serious matter that requires a lot of thinking. The scars, after all, stay visible on the skin for a long, long time. There are those, however, who feel more comfortable getting sliced and permanently scarred.

While there’s much interest in the subject of tattoos, there are things about it not discussed as frequently as they should be. Below are just a few:

1. Your tattoo can get you in legal trouble for copyright infringement.

Our skin is not exempted from intellectual property laws. Using pop culture images and works by other artists for your tattoo can get you in serious legal trouble. There are reported cases of companies and individuals that were sued for copyright infringement after using popular images and works of art for their own tattoos or business endeavors (video games, movies, and television shows, for example).

2. It can take a really long time to recover after getting a tattoo.

Aside from being really painful to get, tattoos can also take a long time to heal. The lucky ones will only take weeks to recover, while those forsaken might have to wait for up to four months until all the medical side effects of getting inked disappear. A survey of 300 ink bros and ink girls saw that 10 percent of them suffered from adverse reactions, like blisters and rashes, even long after getting inked.

3. No one really knows what’s in tattoo ink.

Does anyone bother to ask what’s in the ink before they get started with the whole painful process of getting a tattoo? Since inks aren’t classified as food or drug, the FDA does little to regulate them. Even though the ink is planted into the body, it is only considered a cosmetic product. Some manufacturers are also not transparent in terms of what they put in their inks, but tests have shown that some inks contain heavy metals, microbes, and carcinogens.

4. Tattoos can actually fade and rub off.

Tattoos are not as permanent as you were made to believe. After a few years, tattoos, especially those made with low-quality ink, will certainly fade or turn a different color. Inks placed in areas of the body that constantly move and stretch, like the hands, wrists, and neck, also erode much faster. Stay out of the sun, too, as the intense shedding of the skin can cause tattoos to fade or blot quicker.

5. Many things can make removing a tattoo extremely difficult.

Smokers have a harder time getting their ink removed. The standard laser treatment length of ten sessions is not enough for them, as their smoking habit inhibits the immune system, the way through which tattoo ink is allowed to break down. Those with colorful tattoos will also need more sessions, as the ink tends to change hues instead of totally disappearing. Lastly, the older a tattoo is, the deeper it sinks into the skin, and the harder it is to remove. For a three-year-old ink, for example, laser therapy only has a 47 percent success rate.