{"id":20388,"date":"2021-08-04T13:11:15","date_gmt":"2021-08-04T20:11:15","guid":{"rendered":"https://www.realself.com\/news\/?p=20388"},"modified":"2023-10-12T13:47:33","modified_gmt":"2023-10-12T20:47:33","slug":"belly-button-tattoo-post-tummy-tuck","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https://www.realself.com\/news\/belly-button-tattoo-post-tummy-tuck","title":{"rendered":"How Tattoos Can Create a Natural-Looking Belly Button Post-Tummy Tuck"},"content":{"rendered":"

Most people probably don’t pay much attention to the appearance of their belly button, aside from categorizing it as an innie or an outie. But for those who have undergone tummy tucks<\/a>, hernia repair<\/a>, and other similar abdominal surgeries that affect the belly button—or sometimes render it obsolete all together—this can be an area of serious focus. And just as areola<\/a> tattoos offer an incredibly effective and realistic option for patients undergoing breast reconstruction<\/a> after a mastectomy, so too do tattooed belly buttons make a great solution for those who feel self-conscious about the look of their stomach. Here’s what you need to know about this new type of restorative tattooing.<\/p>

Several things can affect the appearance of the belly button<\/h2>

“The surgeries that are most likely to affect the look of the belly button are those where the incision is made in this area, such as hernia repair, exploratory laparotomies [general surgery where the abdomen is opened to examine the organs in the area], and even some emergency C-sections,” explains Dr. Ruth Celestin<\/a>, a board-certified plastic surgeon in Riverdale, Georgia. “Abdominoplasty can also affect the look of the belly button. Oftentimes, it ends up looking ‘stuck on,’ which many people dislike because they feel it’s a dead giveaway that they’ve had surgery,” she says. There are also certain congenital defects that can cause people to have no belly button at all or cause it to heal in a way that drastically alters the appearance, she says.<\/p>

That being said, the reconstruction or reparative options are somewhat limited. A surgical reconstruction is an option, as is a scar revision or steroid injections, to help flatten thickened scars that are causing a distorted appearance, says Dr. Celestin. <\/p>

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Belly button tattoos are gaining popularity as a restorative solution<\/h2>

“While belly buttons aren’t quite as popular as areolas just yet, I’ve had more and more people reaching out to me about getting this type of tattoo as of late,” says Shaughnessy Otsuji, a tattoo artist at Studio Sashiko in Langley, British Columbia. Otsuji’s first belly button client, Nicci Fisher, a 53-year-old mom of three, asked for a reconstructive belly button tattoo after having an umbilical hernia procedure and a tummy tuck. “The doctor essentially cut off my belly button,” says Fisher. “Shaugnessy was microblading<\/a> my brows and I knew she did restorative areola tattoos, so I decided to ask her about doing my belly button—and she said yes.” <\/p>

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A post shared by Ink Boutique (@inkboutiquehouston)<\/a><\/p><\/div><\/blockquote>