Tattoos, while cherished, can become reminders of life chapters we’ve outgrown or choices we’ve reconsidered. Can tattoos be removed? Yes. However, the pain from tattoo removal often holds people back from pursuing the process, no matter how regrettable an ink art may be.
What if we told you that there are innovative techniques designed to lessen the discomfort of laser tattoo removal? By the end of this blog, you will have greater comprehension of the pain of removing tattoos and gain valuable insights to manage pain before and after tattoo removal.
Tattoo Removal Pain Factors
As unique beings, we also perceive pain differently for each individual. Some liken the pain of the tattoo removal process to hot oil splatters, pertaining to the sudden and sharp nature of the tattoo laser removal.
Others also compare the quick laser pulses to that of the sensation of a snapping rubber band. For some, skin after tattoo removal feels like a mild sunburn – warm, tender, and sensitive like sunburnt skin.
These comparisons simply provide a general idea to set your expectations before your tattoo removal sessions. The skin tattoo removal is a highly individualized process and several factors can influence the pain during the stages of tattoo removal:
- Tattoo Size and Complexity: Knowing the size and intricacy of a tattoo affect the pain experienced in removal. Large tattoo removal or complex tattoo designs may require more laser passes, resulting to increased discomfort. Understanding this factor also allows your tattoo removal specialist to estimate when can tattoos be completely removed.
- Ink Colour and Type: Various ink colours, such as black and dark blue, may influence the condition of your dark tattoo removal before and after. Dark tattoo inks absorb more laser energy, requiring more sessions and heightening pain or discomfort levels. Vibrant colours serve as a challenge, as these require different laser light wavelengths for tattoo removal after 1 session. These factors play a huge part in the laser removal tattoo process and help determine how many sessions does it take to remove a tattoo.
- Skin Type and Sensitivity: Fair or sensitive skin types may experience more discomfort during the process, potentially leading to some laser tattoo removal side effects. Swelling, redness, and blisters after tattoo removal may occur. Darker skin types may have a higher risk of hypo or hyperpigmentation.
- Tattoo Age and Depth: In comparison to fresher inks, older tattoos fade naturally overtime, making the laser tattoo removal process easier and causing less pain. On the other hand, deeper tattoos may require more laser energy to break into its depth.
- Pain threshold: Some individuals have a naturally higher pain tolerance than others, allowing them to tolerate the discomfort of tattoo removal. Those with lower pain tolerance may find the removal procedure more challenging, affecting tattoo removal after healing.
Parts Where Removal Hurts the Least and the Most
As pain from laser on tattoo vary from person to person, knowing the body areas where the removal process offers less pain may help you decide to commit to a tattoo removal plan.
Fleshy and well-padded areas of the body such as the upper arm, thigh, or buttocks tend to hurt the least in the tattoo removal process. Additionally, muscular parts like the calf or upper back are relatively less painful areas as they provide the same cushion effect to fatty areas. These body buffers help minimize the discomfort from tattoo removal laser pulses during the procedure.
A tattoo remover knows which areas of the body are able to rest easy after the removal process and what parts may be impossible to move due to sensitivity.
The most painful areas are those with little padding and with close proximity to the bones. Ribs, ankles, and the collarbone have the absence of a protective layer, making laser pulses more intense and unbearable.
In similar ways, sensitive areas including the neck, face, or genitals rank high up on the list of body parts where removal tend to hurt most. Their thinner and more delicate character make them more susceptible to pain and may affect tattoo laser removal results on these areas.
What Can You Do About the Pain?
Laser pulses target ink pigments on your skin, keeps it safe, and never severely burn or overheat it. Still, the heated sensation may result to some side effects of tattoo removal.
A practical way to counter discomfort caused by heat is applying a cold compress onto the treated area, for about 5 to 10 minutes. This step can be done before and after the removal to prepare and ease the area from discomfort.
In preparing for a removal tattoo procedure, numbing creams containing benzocaine, lidocaine, prilocaine may provide some relief, but do not eliminate pain entirely. Similarly, anesthetic injections may be administered by medical professionals to assist with the pain during the process, but may result in gnawing pains once the medication wears of.
When a removal specialist initiates the process to take off tattoos, they advise patients to fill their stomachs before a session, while avoiding food with caffeine, as it may increase pain sensitivity. Others offer their patients a stress ball during removal, as a way to manage stress and pain.
Tattoo Removal Before and After
Inkless Tattoo Removal acknowledges your need for comfort and makes it as our top concern. With cutting-edge technology such as the MedLite® C6 laser and effective pain management strategies, we are committed to making your inkless journey painless.
Whether you’re thinking of getting a tattoo sleeve removal, hand tattoo removal, or a small tattoo removal, get to experience life-changing skin liberation with us.See for yourself how Inkless understands your unique stories. Let us assist you to achieving the transformative power of our tattoo removal services by contacting us today.