POSTED UNDER Tattoo Removal Reviews
Tattoo Remorse
UPDATED FROM hopeful2345
2 months post
First removal appointment
$250
This past Saturday 10/10 was my first session. I have a friend that works as a nurse and skin therapist and she has been wonderful for my self-esteem and confidence going into the whole procedure. I wasn't sure if PicoSure was the right laser for me, but she's used other lasers before and said that she's never quite seen the results that they get with the Pico laser. She's honestly helped me work through all the jargon that these doctors throw at you and I feel much better for it. She's also helping me through the recovery stages so that I don't end up with nasty scars and marks on my arm for ages. So to go through the procedure: I ended up ordering a numbing cream from a compound pharmacy and they put it on at the office 30 mins prior to my appointment. It felt really funny and they really slathered it on (which I don't think that they were suppose to cause I could have used it again) but any way I found out that they offer a similar cream and got them to write down the ingredients and ran it by my friend and she said that would be fine. So there's $25 saved. Once I was in the appointment room they whipped the area down and cleaned it. Then started to apply the cooling air to it just prior to starting. I can only describe the feeling like having someone pinpoint splashing grease on your arm ... it was still pretty painful ( I feel for anyone that does it without some sort of pain relief). I couldn't see but the doctor was saying the it was responding well, I have photos attached of the setting used so that I can remember for next time. Also snapped a photo straight after (you can see the beautiful frosting effect that you're looking to achieve). And I've attached a few healing shots as well. I kept mine wrapped the way they had it for about 36 hours, I couldn't stand it longer than that. I've been keeping it moist with bepanthan Antiseptic cream and am going out to get a Dermatix silicone sheet to keep it wrapped up and healing. My friend recommend this to help prevent raised scaring and pigmentation change. Under the sheet i'll keep bepanthan and sunscreen. Fingers crossed that I'll see some more fading in the next few weeks. But only 20 days until I leave for holiday (going to be cold so i'll be able to wear long sleeves!) Any other tips or tricks would be much appericated I have another friend that does yoga theraphy and is helping me with some asans to promote good blood flow and manage the stress that this whole thing has been putting on me so hopefully that will help. Cannot wait for this all to be over....
Replies (5)
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UPDATED FROM hopeful2345
1 day post
Little over a week since test patch
I am really anxious to get going with my removal but I'm trying to be patient. I am starting to see some shedding on my test patch and the lines have blown out a bit and the area where the shading was looks like I have a tan. Hoping that this coming weekend when I have my second consult with the other skin clinic here I'll know what I want. Looking to get my first full treatment being of September. Any tips on what I can do to make the process go faster would be appreciated. Any advise on taking care of the area after treatment?
Replies (3)
M
August 17, 2015
Good for you for taking your time and making a plan. Now's the time for good decisions. :-)
As for after care, try to be healthier overall. Drink water, eat better, take your multi-vitamin. Other than that, the first couple days if it's sore or blistery, I leave it alone. But then after that I use lotion every evening and when it feels dry, and sunscreen every time it's exposed to sun.
Also there's a good possibility it will get extremely itchy while healing. I don't use anything at the moment (I always forget to buy something and regret it) but I think it's Eva G. who says she likes to use Bactine for the itchiness. I'm sure other users have other suggestions. But boy, mine gets super itchy!!
As for after care, try to be healthier overall. Drink water, eat better, take your multi-vitamin. Other than that, the first couple days if it's sore or blistery, I leave it alone. But then after that I use lotion every evening and when it feels dry, and sunscreen every time it's exposed to sun.
Also there's a good possibility it will get extremely itchy while healing. I don't use anything at the moment (I always forget to buy something and regret it) but I think it's Eva G. who says she likes to use Bactine for the itchiness. I'm sure other users have other suggestions. But boy, mine gets super itchy!!
EG
August 17, 2015
Yup, Bactine Spray -- It helped so much, and since it's a spray you don't have to rub it in.
H
August 18, 2015
Thank you! I am so bad with drinking water but I have been trying. I do yoga as well to help my mind as well as circulation and that helps. Have to get back into it since i've taken a few weeks off for the tattoo to heal. Would yoga be okay after treatments? some of the classes are a hot yoga class set at around 30 Celsius (roughly 85 F). Wouldn't want to make it worse but I have poor circulation as it is and I have read that especially extremity tattoos can take longer to fade because they are further from the heart.
M
August 18, 2015
Obviously for a few days after your skin will probably be a little tender and warm to the touch, like a sunburn. You might even have a few blisters. But I don't think your yoga classes, even the hot class, will hurt it. Like you said, if it helps your circulation it may just help your tattoo fade faster!
EG
August 17, 2015
Hey there, mtenter offered some really great tips :)
I thought you may find the following helpful as well:
In case you get blisters: What is the Best Way to Care for Blisters from Tattoo Removal?
H
August 18, 2015
Thank you so much for this. My patch test didn't have any blistering which i was thankful for but it did itch a bit. I was able to resit because of the small area but i think i'll have more trouble when i get the whole thing done!
EG
H
August 18, 2015
I've seen some reviews where they've bandaged it with gauze for a while? Since mine will be in the sun a lot and Townsville sun is very harsh is this a better idea than just sunscreen? I work inside luckily so maybe only when I'm going to be out and about? Just seeing a lot of different techniques so I'm trying to find the best of them to hopefully achieve the best results.
Also wondering on waiting periods between treatments - i know that 6-8 weeks is standard and I do want to make it go away as quickly as I can but I would also like to keep treatments to a minimum ($220AUD a pop isn't cheap!) If I was to leave say 12 weeks inbetween treatments (meaning roughly 4 treatments in a year) Do you think there would be better results? Some have said that the longer you wait the more time you give your body to really heal itself and get the most fading.. food for thought at least.
Also wondering on waiting periods between treatments - i know that 6-8 weeks is standard and I do want to make it go away as quickly as I can but I would also like to keep treatments to a minimum ($220AUD a pop isn't cheap!) If I was to leave say 12 weeks inbetween treatments (meaning roughly 4 treatments in a year) Do you think there would be better results? Some have said that the longer you wait the more time you give your body to really heal itself and get the most fading.. food for thought at least.
UPDATED FROM hopeful2345
3 days pre
Making the Decison to wait
So I've made the decision to wait a little longer until I zap my tattoo. I have heard that 4-6 weeks is the best time to start if you want it done early because things are healed and settling but not complete locked in. I booked a consult with another clinic that a friend recommended. The have a different laser and I'm just getting confused because i'm not sure which will be best for me. I am leaning towards the PicoSure because there are a lot of people here that say it's the best for black but then I read other reviews that say it's not as good as everyone says. The girl that i had my consult with showed me a few of her tattoos that she had removed with the q-switch and she said she'd never do that again because it scared so much... just really confused so i figured it's better to just wait, let it heal and really do my research. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I am in a much better spot with the tattoo and I don't get as embarrassed about it, but I do still have those moments where I try to wipe it off... hopefully i can get 2 treatments in before I go back to the US to visit family. Luckily it'll be winter, yay sweaters!
Replies (1)
M
August 12, 2015
I agree, the lasers are confusing! But I think with either laser you choose, you should be alright. I've seen great fading with both lasers!
If someone had scarring they may scar easily, might not have taken care of their skin, or had a bad laser technician/doctor. By far the most important thing is to make sure you have a reputable, intelligent technician/doctor - somebody who won't blast your skin!
Honestly, if I could afford the Picosure, I would switch to that. It's worth the "chance" that it works better right? If you really can't afford it and want to use a Q-Switch like me, (I'm using the Quanta Q + C, 1064nm) just make sure you have a experienced doctor/tech. I've had some really great fading so far and no scarring. "If" my fading stops, I may switch to the Picosure. (I'll have to save up...lol)
If someone had scarring they may scar easily, might not have taken care of their skin, or had a bad laser technician/doctor. By far the most important thing is to make sure you have a reputable, intelligent technician/doctor - somebody who won't blast your skin!
Honestly, if I could afford the Picosure, I would switch to that. It's worth the "chance" that it works better right? If you really can't afford it and want to use a Q-Switch like me, (I'm using the Quanta Q + C, 1064nm) just make sure you have a experienced doctor/tech. I've had some really great fading so far and no scarring. "If" my fading stops, I may switch to the Picosure. (I'll have to save up...lol)
H
August 18, 2015
Thank you for this! I really am just so lost with what to ask when i get to my consult and once the consultation starts all they try to do is pitch you that they are the best and that everything else is horrible. I hate how they use the fear of having scars or a messed up looking tattoo as a way to get you to go one way or another. I've already made one mistake and I'd almost rather live with it than make another rash decision. They pray on the lack of knowledge that is available so I'm trying to really educate myself and know what i'm getting into so that they can't dupe me into some scam package.
Your lucky in a sense because yours is shaded and black, quicker to remove. I'm currently removing two large tattoos that I need to do separately because of their size. one is black the other is red, pink , green black and did I mention RED! I chose all the wrong colours for laser removal so think yourself lucky that you don't have to battle the reddy pink demon.
I'm staying away from all the chemical based creams and sticking to my own organic/natural blend that helps with healing the skin.
Anyways, good luck with it all! I'll be checking in to see your progress!! :)
I would love to know what natural/organic blends your using honestly I'm just trying to get this frickin thing off me the most effective, healthy, and fastest way possible. I feel lucky that I have a friend whose a registered nurse and skin therapist so she's been giving me good advice but I'm game to try anything! I saw your post and photo and you had fantastic results especially for the first go! Do you know what settings they used? Just am trying to gauge if I need to ask the doctor to go a little harder on it, but I think it's just because mine is still pretty new compared to yours. Will be looking out for your updates! Stay strong!