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I'm a 20 year old female who has a tattoo that...
I'm a 20 year old female who has a tattoo that needs to come off. I have the name of someone I dated for 6 years on my left ribcage. It is sort of needless to say why I would want this removed, but I will just mention that this person emotionally and physically abused me for years and I have moved on with my life. I am currently in a very happy relationship with someone else that I hope to spend my life with and it's time to start the process of removing this. I expect it to be very expensive, I'm hoping no more than $300 a session, and I'm expecting a full removal to take probably 10 sessions from what I've read. This is my first and only tattoo and I'm not sure if I want the entire thing fully removed or if I want to lighten it significantly so that it is completely not visible if I put another tattoo over it. I will decide this as the process goes along.
Some positives that I have going for me:
I am very pale.
The tattoo is only black ink.
The tattoo is close to the heart so it will receive good circulation for healing and dispersing the ink.
The lettering is shaded and has skin breaks so this portion of it will probably fade quickly.
Some negatives:
The tattoo is fairly new. About a year old, so it hasn't had 20 years to fade or anything unfortunately.
The black seems to be saturated and done well. If it was done more lightly or more poorly it would be removed easier.
Overall I am excited to begin this process. I am annoyed at myself for doing this in the first place of course but it is a life lesson and the good thing is with today's technology this does not have to remain on my body forever :). I won't beat myself up too much about it since I'm on my way to remedying the situation. I'm betting this will probably blister and the laser will be painful but that won't really bother me. The thought of it coming off will make it all worth it. I have a consultation at Parks Dermatology in FL on September 18th 2014. There they will tell me how much the price per session will be, how many treatments they think it will need (which is always just a ballpark, and then they adjust their estimate based on how your skin reacts). I am also curious to find out what laser they use. I hope its the picosure one but I don't know yet. If I don't get good results with the laser they have I will probably start traveling an hour to Orlando to go somewhere that has the picosure one because its supposedly much better at removing the ink. I would rather pay a little bit more and get better results than waste my time with something that doesn't work as well. Because in the end if you use the better laser you will probably need less treatments than the worse laser and end up paying around the same amount. At least that's my logic so far, hah.
Currently this tattoo doesn't see the light of day since its on my ribs and I wear a bandaid over it at all times. I'm happy I decided to place it here as its very easy to cover and it will also be easy to keep bandaged while healing. It's about 3.5 inches long by 1.5 inches wide. (or 9cm long by 4cm wide).
The woman who will be preforming my procedure is a licensed physicians assistant and I've checked her credentials thoroughly and seems to be more than qualified. I will also be looking at reviews of the dermatology practice to make sure they are positive. I have spoken to someone (my mom) who has gone to this practice for lasering a small black/yellow/blue tattoo on the back of her neck and she says positive things about them…. she's had a few treatments on it and its very much faded and coming along well…so far so good.
I will update when I go to my consultation with more info. I will probably make an appointment for my first treatment while I'm there. Wish me luck:)
By the way..black [RS bleep] surrounding the tat in my pictures is just glue from the bandaid i keep over it.
Some positives that I have going for me:
I am very pale.
The tattoo is only black ink.
The tattoo is close to the heart so it will receive good circulation for healing and dispersing the ink.
The lettering is shaded and has skin breaks so this portion of it will probably fade quickly.
Some negatives:
The tattoo is fairly new. About a year old, so it hasn't had 20 years to fade or anything unfortunately.
The black seems to be saturated and done well. If it was done more lightly or more poorly it would be removed easier.
Overall I am excited to begin this process. I am annoyed at myself for doing this in the first place of course but it is a life lesson and the good thing is with today's technology this does not have to remain on my body forever :). I won't beat myself up too much about it since I'm on my way to remedying the situation. I'm betting this will probably blister and the laser will be painful but that won't really bother me. The thought of it coming off will make it all worth it. I have a consultation at Parks Dermatology in FL on September 18th 2014. There they will tell me how much the price per session will be, how many treatments they think it will need (which is always just a ballpark, and then they adjust their estimate based on how your skin reacts). I am also curious to find out what laser they use. I hope its the picosure one but I don't know yet. If I don't get good results with the laser they have I will probably start traveling an hour to Orlando to go somewhere that has the picosure one because its supposedly much better at removing the ink. I would rather pay a little bit more and get better results than waste my time with something that doesn't work as well. Because in the end if you use the better laser you will probably need less treatments than the worse laser and end up paying around the same amount. At least that's my logic so far, hah.
Currently this tattoo doesn't see the light of day since its on my ribs and I wear a bandaid over it at all times. I'm happy I decided to place it here as its very easy to cover and it will also be easy to keep bandaged while healing. It's about 3.5 inches long by 1.5 inches wide. (or 9cm long by 4cm wide).
The woman who will be preforming my procedure is a licensed physicians assistant and I've checked her credentials thoroughly and seems to be more than qualified. I will also be looking at reviews of the dermatology practice to make sure they are positive. I have spoken to someone (my mom) who has gone to this practice for lasering a small black/yellow/blue tattoo on the back of her neck and she says positive things about them…. she's had a few treatments on it and its very much faded and coming along well…so far so good.
I will update when I go to my consultation with more info. I will probably make an appointment for my first treatment while I'm there. Wish me luck:)
By the way..black [RS bleep] surrounding the tat in my pictures is just glue from the bandaid i keep over it.
Consult was today
I had my consultation today and the PA is very intelligent and I'm confident that she knows what she's doing. I was quoted at $150 per session (thank god, i was expecting it to be more). She didn't say how many sessions she thought it would take because she doesn't know how much/how deep the ink is. She said she'll give me a ballpark after she sees how the first couple sessions fade it. I was given my instruction sheet and told that she expects to fully remove it since its small and simple black and I'm pale. Very good news.
Here are my instructions:
Post op care:
* Apply an antibacterial ointment, bacitracin or polysporin, to the area.
*Keep the area covered with a non adhesive Telfa pad for 48 hours.
*Keep the site moist. NEVER let the area dry or scab over. Do not pick at it.
*You may shower as normal but do not scrub the area until healed.
*Avoid scratching at it.
*If you have discomfort during the first 24 hours take Tylenol.
*The skin should heal normally within 10 to 14 days.
*Appointments for lasering are scheduled 6 to 8 weeks after each treatment.
*Wash the area only with antibacterial Dial soap. No body washes or regular shower soaps.
*The tattoo will look foggy and begin its fading process over the next month. Fading is typically 30% to 50% with each treatment. The total fading process can take up to 8 weeks. Green ink fades slower and can take up to 16 weeks for max fading.
She also told me to get Aveeno mineral ware SPF 55+ to wear on it every day once the skin has healed even if the tattoo is completely covered by clothing.
She mentioned that I should stay out of the sun and that the treatment hurts and feels like hot oil on your skin but its over with quickly.
My first treatment is scheduled for September 30th of this year, and I will update then.:)
Here are my instructions:
Post op care:
* Apply an antibacterial ointment, bacitracin or polysporin, to the area.
*Keep the area covered with a non adhesive Telfa pad for 48 hours.
*Keep the site moist. NEVER let the area dry or scab over. Do not pick at it.
*You may shower as normal but do not scrub the area until healed.
*Avoid scratching at it.
*If you have discomfort during the first 24 hours take Tylenol.
*The skin should heal normally within 10 to 14 days.
*Appointments for lasering are scheduled 6 to 8 weeks after each treatment.
*Wash the area only with antibacterial Dial soap. No body washes or regular shower soaps.
*The tattoo will look foggy and begin its fading process over the next month. Fading is typically 30% to 50% with each treatment. The total fading process can take up to 8 weeks. Green ink fades slower and can take up to 16 weeks for max fading.
She also told me to get Aveeno mineral ware SPF 55+ to wear on it every day once the skin has healed even if the tattoo is completely covered by clothing.
She mentioned that I should stay out of the sun and that the treatment hurts and feels like hot oil on your skin but its over with quickly.
My first treatment is scheduled for September 30th of this year, and I will update then.:)
1st treatment
My first treatment was today. The laser is the Q Switched Neodymium YAG 1064. The entire process of zapping the tattoo took probably less than 2 minutes but I was SO ready for it to be over. It was extremely painful, definitely more so than getting the tattoo in the first place. I'm to wear a Telfa pad bandage and antibacterial ointment until it heals. I go back the beginning of Jan for my next treatment. I'll post some pictures in about 6 weeks or so to show how it fades.
Provider Review
Meg Pierce, PA-C