What's it really like???

[xsecretsx]

I've always really wanted a small tattoo. But i'm totally petrified of needles and pain.

I'm just wanting some honest information. How painful are tattoos? What are they really like?

Wheres least painful etc?

[Gaia]

I have one on my lower back, and I'm not going to lie, it hurt, especially over the spine.
It wasn't unbearable, but it made me feel extremely hot, that and the fact it was a very warm summer's day made me stop him. It's hard to describe the pain as it's unlike anything I have experienced.
Somewhere more fleshy than bone would be less painful.
Bear in mind, you don't have to watch them do it. For all my piercings and tattoo all I had to do was check that they were using a sterilised needle, and then I could look away.

[thefirstlady]

It's not bad at all. Most of the time I couldn't feel any of mine. When I could, it felt like scratching a sunburn but it fades quickly. Least painful for me was my thigh, arm, and shoulder blade. Ribs, feet, etc tend to be the more painful areas. Any bony area will be more painful than others. Also, everyone is different in pain tolerance and areas so this is just a general idea!

[Nicole!]

I don't have any tattoos, but my english teacher talked about his recently. He said it wasn't an unbearable pain, but it was uncomfortable. It will hurt, so be prepared. However he said it hurt less then he was expecting.

[Kitty.]

I don't have any tattoos either, but from what I have heard, they can be painful, but they are usually tolerable. Bony areas will definitely hurt more than fleshy areas.

[Chazzz]

The closest feeling I can relate it to is when you're frying something in a pan and a little bit of the oil spits onto your arm. (If you've never done that, obviously don't try :P)

[xsecretsx]

Thanks guys. I don't know i've been kinda expecting some kind of agonising pain as loads of needles are pushed through your flesh....

How deep do the needles go etc?

[Gaia]

They don't go deep at all, roughly 1mm. In my mind it's more like they are colouring in your skin with the side of the needle.
To go scientific, they have to reach the dermis layer of skin, as the epidermis is constantly healing, and if they only reached the epidermis the tattoo would not stay.

[Ryan1]

It really depends where on the body you get yours. They are painful however after 15 minuets of being tattooed on the area goes numb making it much better.

[Maloo]

They SHOULDN'T go very deep at all, if it's being done right.

And yes, they're needles, but not like normal needles. They don't really even look like needles.

Everyone has a different level of pain tolerance, so asking how bad it hurts is going to get you very different answers.

In my opinion, the one I got on my hip hurt, but not that bad. The one I got on my ribs, however, was absolutely excruciating.

[jellyfish]

It depends on your own pain threshold.
My big one at the top of my back really hurt, especially on and near my spine. I find that the longer your sitting is, the more its going to hurt. I couldnt even cope with shading towards the end.

The only way I can describe it is, sort of a severe metallic scratch. Once the gun leaves your skin the pain stops.

[Singing to the starlight]

Mine was on my foot, and I won't lie, it was agony. However the foot is very bony and one of the worst places to get them except for the spine (apparently). If you want it, then you will sit through the pain.

[Anonymity]

For right now,Ii only have one small tattoo around my ankle. It went over the bone and achilles tendon, which you'd think would be excrutiatingly painful, bit I honestly thought it was a very pleasant sensation. My ex has a few larger tattoos on his forearms, and he said they hurt pretty badly. But apparently not badly enough to keep him from getting more. According to him, coloured ink hurts far worse than black ink, but I personally have only used black.