More about tattoos, get relief of pain during inked.

Aseem Anand

Follow on Instagram (Click Here)

When it comes to getting inked, the old motto "no pain, no gain" is unfortunately rather accurate. All tattoos hurt at least a little.

·          Where tattoos hurt the most:

A good amount of the pain from your tattoo is affected by the location on your body where you get it. If you're looking to minimize your pain, you may want to move it to one of the less-painful areas. While everyone's body is different, in general.

·         Areas with lots of muscle (arms, legs, upper pectorals) and areas with lots of fatty padding (glutes, hips, etc.) tend to hurt the least.

·         Sensitive areas (breasts, underarms, face, groin) and "hard" areas close to bones (scalp, face, collarbone, ribs, hands, feet ) tend to hurt the most.^[2]

·         This article has a handy diagram that shows the pain levels for different parts of the body.

·         Which tattoos hurt the most:

All tattoos are not created equally. The pain level of your tattoo experience can also be affected by what, exactly, you're getting put onto your body. While some exceptions exist, in general:

·         The smaller and simpler a tattoo is, the less painful it will be. Large, detailed designs hurt much more.

·         One-color tattoos are less painful (and take less time) than multi-color tattoos.

·         Areas of solid color hurt the most because they require the artist to go over her work several times.

·         Know that there will be needles and a small amount of blood:

A modern tattoo gun is essentially a small set of needles that go in and out of the skin very quickly, leaving a little ink each time.^[4] This basically has the effect of making lots of tiny cuts in the area where the tattoo is. Almost everyone who gets a tattoo bleeds a little bit from this. If any of this process makes you feel faint or nauseous, you should plan not to watch.

·         Don't be afraid to explain your situation to your tattoo artist. A good one will be more than happy to help you get through your tattoo with minimal discomfort.

·         While You're Getting the Tattoo:

Ø  Calm yourself

Ø  Make yourself as comfortable as possible

Ø  Squeeze or chew something to relieve pain

Ø  Exhale during especially painful periods

Ø  Move as little as possible

Ø  Don't be afraid to take breaks

Ø  Try an OTC pain medication (but not a blood thinner)

Ø  Don't dull the pain by getting drunk

Ø  Listen to your artist's care instructions