Speaking of tattoos...has anyone had them removed?

[vintagelover229]

So, I have a couple of tattoos (one beautiful and quite large) and they are in well hidden places (on my hip and on my lower stomach). I got them both when I was 17, and even though I don't mind them, I don't love them and I'm considering removing them. They aren't tacky tattoos, but I really didn't think them though (although I thought about them both for a few years before getting them) and the thought of when I become a parents (in about 5 years we hope) I'd really like to not have them anymore. The reason isn't any more than just because I don't want them, not because they are anything that I regret to have put on my body, I just want my nice clean skin back.

So, has anyone had experience removing tattoos? I know there is some sort of balm that you can put on to remove it, or at least start the process, does that work at all?

Has any one done laser removal? I have a large tattoo (probably 7"by 3") that is a rose with a music staff, and music notes that's multi colored and I'm thinking it's going to cost like 2k to get it removed. My other one is all black 1" by 1" and so I'm not really worried about that one.

Anyways, I would love to hear your stories and experiences!

 

[Maisie]

I am going to have one of mine removed too. Its the one on my lower arm (see FB for pic RR). I am studying Beauty Therapy at college and will be qualified next summer. I feel that I won't project the right image with that tattoo and want it taken off. Its going to cost me a lot of money too as its not a small one.

I am looking forward to hearing people's experiences too.

 

[Liane]

I've had two tattoos lasered. Both were all-black designs about 2"x3". It took 10 laser treatments and cost about $4K in total.


-- gross details follow, you have been warned --


Laser removal is not fun. The entire area blisters up BAD. You have to put burn ointment on it for the first week or so and cover it with gauze pads, changing the pads about twice a day because the blister juice seeps out (and it takes a lot of gauze; sometimes I'd wake up in the middle of the night because the pads had soaked through in the space of a couple hours and my clothes were getting wet). After the blisters heal, you have to put a heavy-duty moisturizer on it daily for the next couple of weeks and keep that covered so the moisturizer doesn't get on your clothes. You also have to keep the lasered area from being exposed to sunlight for at least the first two weeks before and after each treatment (and it's better if you just keep it covered the entire time).

NB: this was my experience with getting two fairly large ones removed. An acquaintance had a much smaller design that was just a circlet going around her upper arm, and she did not experience anything like the amount of blistering I had, because she was just getting a narrow line lasered instead of six square inches of skin. So, if your tattoo has a relatively small amount of actual ink, you're likely to have less damage. On the other hand, if your artwork is really dense, your experience will probably be more like mine.

Being Asian, I also have some hyperpigmentation around the lasered area, meaning that the surrounding skin has become a dark brown color. (White people are less prone to this side effect, although Mediterranean complexions also often get it. Basically, the more yellow/olive you are, the more likely you are to see hyperpigmentation.) This should go away entirely within a year or two, but I'll have to live with it until then. I also have hypopigmentation in the lasered area: the skin has turned white, like a burn scar. This will fade but probably never go away entirely.

In retrospect, I kind of wish I hadn't gotten the laser treatments, because I never hated my tattoos. I just wanted to get something bigger and better in the same areas. But once you start, the tattoo fades and looks stupid, so you kinda have to carry through once you've begun.

Balms and creams do not work; those are scams that will just take your money. Lasering is the only effective method of removal. Unfortunately it is also the most expensive and least fun option, and if you have big/densely inked tattoos it will take years for the process to be finished. The actual lasering took about 18 months to complete, and as I noted above, it's going to be at least another year before the skin tone evens out.

Anyway, now that I've done it, I don't really have regrets, but neither do I look at the experience with unalloyed joy. It sucked. It sucked a LOT. I'm glad it's over.

 

[vintagelover229]

Liane: Thank you so much for sharing! I don't hate my side tattoo (which is the larger of the two) but I do have the Chinese symbol of love near my right hip bone that will probably not look good after pregnancy (I'm not pregnant nor will be any time soon, at least planned) but would consider doing that one, and leaving the other one after your post. It is pretty, and to much of a hassle to remove (not to mention costly). But perhaps the smaller one would be an option then. I'll try to post a pic later to show you guys what I'd like to remove, and if I should remove both or not

 

[TooPatient]

I tried one of the scrub/lotion combo treatments. Cost me about $100 for what should have been a 30 day supply. Since my tattoo is small (about 1 inch by 1 inch) it lasted closer to 3 months. It actually faded some with that. I think it would have worked a lot better if I had done it twice a day (recommended) instead of once a day and kept it up longer. (I got a little enthusiatic and tried to scrub harder to get it off faster and it left my skin a little raw so I couldn't use if for about a week and then I just forgot about it most of the time)

Anyway, it did improve some and I plan to get more of it and try again (twice per day EVERYDAY). Even if all it does is fade the color, it may reduce (if it doesn't eliminate) the number of laser treatments needed.


One thing to consider is that certain colors take longer to remove with lasers and some colors on some people never come off entirely.


ETA: I used Tattoo-Off