Does getting a tattoo hurt?
Well the short answer is yes it hurts… and the long answer is getting a tattoo hurts of course, your having a needle injected into your skin at an incredible speed.

Heres a tattoo pain chart to give you an idea of the worst places to get a tattoo.

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Tattoo pain can be described in so many different ways depending on the person who`s had it done, people have described it like a cat scratching your skin, a hot needle being dragged across your skin and some even say it`s like having your skin cut open. So as you can see people have different pain thresholds when getting tattoos, for example if your young and haven`t experienced much pain in your life and it`s your first tattoo then it`s going to be a very painful experience but if you`re getting long in the tooth and have broke some bones or had stitches then it`s not going to be that bad.

So you might be thinking I`m not getting a tattoo if it`s going to hurt that bad but what you have to remember is that if you really want one and its the perfect design for you then a few hours pain for a lifetime of pleasure is really worth it.

Here are some tips to help you with tattoo pain.

1. Under no circumstances should you have a tattoo when drunk, most tattoo artists with not tattoo you anyway as it can make you bleed excessively and you might make the wrong tattoo choice.

2. Do not have a tattoo when your hungover as your nerves will be a lot more sensitive and you will FEEL THE PAIN trust me I know.

3. Don`t have a tattoo when you have a cold as that too can increase the pain levels.

4. Get some numbing gel, some people swear by it but I have tried it myself and it only seem to work for the first 10-15 Min’s so would be OK for a small tattoo.

The best advice I can give is to be focused and distracted after the first 10-15 Min’s of getting the tattoo you seem to be able to switch off to the pain, its still there and your aware of it but you kind of get over the first initial shock.

Thanks for reading guys and good luck with your tattoo pain :)

Comments
  1. Dosox
    October 29, 2008

    Nice Post…

    …and haven`t experienced much pain in your life and its your first tattoo then its going to be a very painful experience…

    I belong to that category

    Leave a reply
  2. LeMelon
    October 29, 2008

    To prepare myself for getting a tattoo I would imagine it being AMAZINGLY painful so that when it happens I hopefully think to myself “that wasn’t too bad!” :D

    Leave a reply
  3. Louise Bostock
    October 31, 2008

    Mine hurt like hell.

    Leave a reply
  4. vicky
    February 9, 2009

    helloo im 16 and im gettin a flower tattoo on my lower back but the thing is its got shit loads of black in it and its quite big…
    i dont mind needles or blood im just shit on pain i be sick and everything so what do you thing i should be thinkin about duein the tatoo coz i aint havin any numbin gel so help me please and ill comment you back how it went thanksss x

    Leave a reply
  5. admin
    February 10, 2009

    Make sure its what you want first your still pretty young.
    For the pain i would suggest using numbing gel if you can, why arn`t you?
    have plently of sleep the day before and as long as you don`t feel tired or unwell you should be fine, it will hurt but after around ten minutes your body tends to get used to it, kind of feels like scratching.
    Remember think twice before you have one not because of the pain but having something with you for the rest of your life you don`t like is not good.
    Good luck

    Leave a reply
  6. Victoria
    February 23, 2009

    I had my first tattoo at the grand old age of forty six and boy was it good.I had a scorpion on my pubic mound and the pain did not last too long. It did help that the guy who did it was a dude,it also helped having wall pictures to look at when it did hurt .I cant wait for the next one.Its going to be a tiger on my very lower back.Well low down,something for the husband to look at.

    Leave a reply
  7. DreamDog
    February 27, 2009

    I am nineteen and already have four tattoos. They do not hurt as bad as everyone says they do. To me they feel incredibly awesome. I have a big one on my left shoulder blade, one on the back of my neck, one on my wrist and a deerskull on the outside of my left ankle. The one I got on my shoulderblade actually hurt a fair amount, of course that was because of past injuries to the left side of my body and for having to sit there for two and a half hours straight. Nevertheless, I love all of my tattoos and am getting one on each side of my pelvic area as well as one on my left ribs.

    Leave a reply
  8. TinyOak
    March 2, 2009

    I got my first in the usual old traditional way…joined the Army and went to the local parlor like many before me. It was on my right shoulder so it was a nice “meaty” spot. Wasn’t too bad for the most part until the tip of the Griffin’s wings hit the bone just at the joint area. So yea I would say closer to bone the worse it was.

    Leave a reply
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    March 3, 2009

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  10. V5art
    April 3, 2009

    Interesting fact is that if you have a pulled muscle or sprained joint somewhere on your body (except the body part where you are getting a tattoo) the pain of getting a tattoo is rather mild. However under NO SURCUMSTANCES should you get a tattoo on a pulled muscle or sprained joint itself believe me it will fell like hell.

    Leave a reply
  11. shavon
    April 17, 2009

    I have 3 tattoos and love every one of them. One I drew up myself of 3 roses (one red rose in the middle of 2 light blue roses) with a banner with my 3 kids names under each rose…. that ones on my lower back (it hurt like hell….. 4 1/2 hours of pain) and the other 2 are one baby fairy on my left shoulder & and a heart with rose thorns all around it. and if I was asked wich of the 3 hurt the most I would have to say the one on my lower back…. LOTS AND LOTS of color and shadding and its about 4inch tall and goes from one side to the other… it got real bad every time the guy was on the spine and on the soft parts of my sides. But like I said I would never go back on what I have had done… I love my tatts and show them off as much as I can!!!

    Leave a reply
  12. niqui_nyno
    April 27, 2009

    hi i have 6 tats an i am 31 an am due number 7 any time now i love the pain its sooo more-ish….i am quite pain tolerable so thats a bonus i am having a fairy an trolls an ma lower back an i cant wait!!!

    Leave a reply
  13. Robert
    June 26, 2009

    I have around 50 tattoos, full arm sleeves, some on legs and back, elbows, hand and fingers, the only spot that hurt was the inner part of my arm, opposite the elbow.

    Leave a reply
  14. George M
    June 27, 2009

    I’ve been Spreading ink for about 17 yrs, total and ten of it professionally. In me experience, it also has a lot to do with how your artist has his machine set up. Short throw=quicker penetration less time for pain receptors to trigger between punctures. also fairer skin ppl tend to have a harder go of it than people with darker/tougher skin. And too, how heavy your artist’ hand is makes a hell of a lot of difference

    Leave a reply
  15. admin
    July 14, 2009

    Come on guys only 2 diggs? it took me ages to write that :)

    Leave a reply

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