Numbing for tattoo?

Gauge

Failing that, gain about 100 pounds so that you can't even feel your ribs anymore. Get tattooed, then lose the 100 pounds.

Legal Disclaimer: There is no guarantee the tattoo will look anything like it did when first done once you have lost 100 pounds.

Crumble Froo

y'no... it's so crazy, it just might work

bounty_hunter

Gauge wrote:

Failing that, gain about 100 pounds so that you can't even feel your ribs anymore. Get tattooed, then lose the 100 pounds.

Legal Disclaimer: There is no guarantee the tattoo will look anything like it did when first done once you have lost 100 pounds.

Actually it wasn't the ribs bit that was the worst. As I've said a couple of times it was the bit between the boobs that nearly made me pass out. Although I suppose that technically is part of the ribs... In any case I'm not sure how much more fleshy it would get if I gained weight, but I will commence eating immediately!

lemansky

Hi all. I'm thinking about getting my first tattoo, and want it on my shoulder...well thats the place that I have in mind at the moment anyway. Pain is not ani ssue(i'll just smile regardless:D ), but seeing as we're on the subject of pain, how sore is to get one done there, just so as I'm prepared?Its not going to be a huge tattoo.

bounty_hunter

It's impossible to tell you that, pain is completely subjective. In general boney areas are more painful than fleshy areas, but you might feel nothing at all, whereas it could bring somebody else to tears.

crazy_hayzie

yeah i'd have to agree. everyone has a differet threshold for pain. my tatooist said that my response to being tattoo'd on my ribs is giving him a bit of a confidence boost to get his done. that and the fact that it's the only place he's not tattoo'd! i found that the skin on bone(ribs and collar bone) was painfull but also the soft fleshy parts such as the front of the shoulder heading down towards the armpit wasn't exactly orgasmic either... shoulders and back i could've sat there all day and got tattoo'd on them! so i did, ha ha!

lemansky

Oh I know that everybody's threshold is different but I was just thinking in general that certain areas would be more susceptible to pain than others,regardless of the individual's threshold.Like the ribs are going to hurt more than say the shoulder in theory, but the individual's threshold would determine how sore it was if you get me.

But it seems that the shoulder doesn't hurt much then.

amazingemmet

The arm is the least sorest well the upper arm anyway, also i strangely like getting my traps tattooed its like getting bitten and massaged at the same time

Crumble Froo

ive only the one so far, on my wrist, but i found it very very painless. id sat with my hand clenched ready for pain, and then gone 'oh. cool!'. and relaxed and enjoyed the sensation and stuff.

Reku

The upper arm I'd describe as feeling like a general burning sensation, stings but you can ignore it.
Shoulder blade much the same actually, didn't find it particularly painful for some reason even though many people say it should've been worse than the arm.
Front of the ribs - painful.
Spine/back of the ribs - Agh! :eek: F-off and leave me alone! Agh!:mad:
Seriously this one did hurt, just as well that I really wanted it or I might've just called it quits, paid and left. Was still sore for weeks after too, damned nerve clusters along the spine, evil things!:mad:

And one thing I think may have an impact is the size of what you're getting done, e.g. for me lettering was less sore than a piece of a similar total area, probably due to the pain response being spread over a larger area and so having a less intense feel to it. (Both were done on the arms, similar position, just opposite arms before anyone says it was due to location)

lemansky

So I'll be staying away from the idea of getting my ribs done!:D

Thanks for that its a great help to hear what everyone says about the susceptibility of different areas to pain. I'm set on getting my shoulder done anyway-it'll be a symbol, and not overly huge, so I guess it won't be too bad...I still don't now about designs though.
I have a few places in mind including snakebite, and one other place whose name I can't remember but I was very impressed with the work I saw from it, and the reports about the staff and hygiene etc were fantastic.

gline

damn my first tattoo was gonna be a spine all the way down the spine.. was told 2x 4hour sessions..... do they let u listen to an ipod or whatever when geting it done, if so i think i MIGHT be able to bear it i broke my femur before and the ambulance crew said i had an amazing threshold for pain, so i might be ok.... any tips for when getting it done?? i was gonna have a few drinks before hand but was told this has a blood thinning effect?

Zapp Brannigan

Drinking is a no-no. Yeah I'm sure you could listen to your iPod but just ask the artist first just so he doesn't think you're a knobend :P

gline

Zapp Brannigan wrote:

Drinking is a no-no. Yeah I'm sure you could listen to your iPod but just ask the artist first just so he doesn't think you're a knobend :P

yeh i was thinking that... it just helps me zone out and damn i think il need it from the comments above about spine tatoos :eek:

bounty_hunter

Reporting back on the effects of Emla while tattooing:
It was brilliant! I actually laughed going over my rib cage because it was tickly, whereas before I was practically writhing in agony.

That is until it wore off... jesus ****ing christ on a cracker. The pain actually seemed like double when it suddenly hit all at once, plus the whole area that had already been tattooed stung like an absolute bitch, and continued to do so for several hours afterwards. Luckily enough I only had about 15 minutes left to go when the cream stopped working, so I just stuck on my headphones and made it through by concentrating on every single beat of the music.

All in all, well worth it if you're not going to be working for more than an hour, despite the stinging afterwards, but otherwise steer well clear. I would also only recommend it if the area being tattooed is actually too painful to sit through, not just for general use. Otherwise the pain afterwards is about equal to what it would have been in the first place.

Crumble Froo

pics when youre done... this had better be an absolute beauty considering all the pain!

ya happy with it though,yeah?:)

bounty_hunter

Yeah very happy so far, it still needs a lot of work though. At least another 3 hours...
Just gonna keep at it slowly and it'll get there eventually.

gline

what is the heal time like on the back??

bounty_hunter

gline wrote:

what is the heal time like on the back??

That's another thing that really depends entirely on the individual. From what you've described about the piece you're getting it's going to require a few sessions (I know you were told 2 x 4hr sessions but that may turn out not to work), and you'll have to wait a minimum of about 2 weeks between each. If you heal quite slowly, it'll be longer. It isn't possible to say until you begin! For the whole thing to heal completely it's usually about a month or so, maybe 6 weeks.
Because of the general flexibility of the spine it tends to take a bit longer to heal than some other areas.

gline

interesting, thanks for the info

so im AT LEAST looking at 2-3 weeks per session, maybe more?

bounty_hunter

At least 2 weeks, yeah. Even if you'd healed up enough to continue after 1 week (which is unlikely), your skin would still be quite sensitive and therefore it would hurt more. Don't let it put you off though, it's well worth taking your time in the end. You'll end up with a better tattoo and a better tattooing experience.

gline

yeh i dont think its gonna put me off
maybe though il just break up 2x 4 hour sessions to 4x 2hour sessions
il see how it goes.

bounty_hunter

It might work out for the best! Pics when it's done please

amazingemmet

Same goes to you

bounty_hunter

Will do. No pics yet though, I'm not entirely happy with the last session.

Crumble Froo

ouch, how come?!:eek:

bounty_hunter

Ah it's just not entirely symmetrical, that's all
That kind of thing really really bugs me though, I won't be able to settle till it's fixed.

Crumble Froo

forget about the money, that one just sounded like too much pain to go through for it not to be 110% perfect to you!

bounty_hunter

Oh it will be be perfect, I'll be getting it fixed first thing in the next session. It's just really annoying me in the meantime! Want it fixed now. *huffs*