Have you ever got a tattoo that you’ve regretted a few years later? I have, two actually! When I was 18 years old I got my first tattoo on my wrist, and a year later my second behind my ear. Now a decade later, I am going through the process to get these two tattoos removed for good!
The Story of When I got Them
I was 18, so of course I thought I knew everything. I went with my friend and got the word “Truth” and three stars tattooed on my left wrist, because I thought this was so meaningful.
A year later, I was with my friends and my mom, and we stopped into a tattoo shop. I impulsively got the heart behind my ear and my mom got one on her hip. My heart, however, was deformed and messed up, so the “artist” filled it in and didn’t say much. I also got my wrist one touched up, where he completely messed it up, went too dark, and made it look like the word “fruth”… they both look AWFUL.
Why I’m Removing Them Now
After a decade of ALWAYS wearing a watch to cover my wrist tattoo up, and keeping my hair down so nobody can see the deformed heart, I have finally decided that it’s time to get them removed!
This actually came to be because my new client, Dr. Nelson, is a vegan naturopath and works at Delete Tattoo Removal & Laser Salon! She was explaining the process of tattoo removal to me and I thought I should take the plunge and have her do it!
How the Consultation Went
I scheduled a consultation with Dr. Nelson and went in the following week! Their office is adorable and actually in my old neighborhood in Phoenix so it brought back a little nostalgia.
The first part of the consultation, Dr. Nelson evaluated my tattoos. She measured how big they are; my wrist one is about an inch by two and a half inches, and my ear is an inch by an inch.
She also evaluated how deep the tattoo coloring is and what she predicts the lasers will do. My wrist one has some green coloring, so she warned me they could turn out looking a little funky (white color possibly), but honestly at this point I think anything will be better! My eat one she thinks will be removed quite easily since it was never touched up.
From there, she brought out a cost estimate sheet. The investment of the procedure depends on how many sessions you need, what type of laser you need, and if you’d like to receive anesthesia. This office offers anesthesia which I thought was a really cool option!
How the Laser Removal Went
Since I knew I for sure wanted these bad boys removed, I also scheduled time that day to get my first laser treatment done on both tattoos!
First, Dr. Nelson took photos of my tattoos for my charts in order to compare how it looks over time! I love that, just like progress photos for my clients!
Next, she tested a small area of my wrist with the laser so I could see how it would feel since I was leaning towards not getting anesthesia. To my surprise, it was not bad at all, so I had her go for it!
What it Feels like: The best way I can describe it is it feels like hot grease on a pan splatters on your skin, or a rubber band flicking you over and over again. It did slightly burn for a brief moment, but not bad enough that I wouldn’t do it again.
Immediately after they laser you, Dr. Nelson puts aloe vera on the area and they have you hold ice onto it so that you do not blister. If you blister this could cause an open wound and infection, so I held ice on my wrist immediately when she was done.
How Long it Took: My wrist tattoo removal treatment took only a couple of minutes, and then she moved onto the one behind my ear; this only took 40-60 seconds and I honestly didn’t think it hurt at all!
Pain Level: Honestly, I think my wrist was a 5-6 pain level out of 10 when she was doing it, and my ear was a 1-2 out of 10.
Aftercare
Dr. Nelson went over the aftercare rules with me once my treatment was over. She had put aloe vera on my tatts, and then wrapped my wrist and neck with cotton and adhesive to keep them covered. She then wrapped a small ice pack on top of both areas in order to keep them cool on the drive home.
For the first 24 hours I had to ice every couple hours, or if I felt it throb like a burn. I was not allowed to work out (I went to the gym before my appointment) as they don’t want your body temp to rise; this can cause blistering.
I had to keep an eye on them and make sure there were no signs of blisters. Honestly I thought they both looked really good the next day!!
One Week Post-Treatment
It has been almost a week so far since my first treatment, and I am just being careful in the gym by not letting any equipment hit the areas. I am keeping them dry and putting aloe vera on them if they feel dry or flakey. They gave me antibiotic cream just incase, and I only put it on once to a very small area that looked pink and it looked great within a couple hours.
Frequency of Treatments
I am scheduled to go in for treatments every 8 weeks or so. My wrist will likely need around 10 sessions, and my ear will only need around 5.
Again, frequency of appointments is usually about every 8 weeks, but Dr. Nelson said the longer you spread them out, the more the tattoos should fade over time!
Before/After One Treatment Comparisons:
Definitely Recommend!
If you have been thinking about removing your tattoo, I highly recommend starting the process! If you are local to Phoenix, I highly recommend scheduling a consultation at Delete Tattoo Removal & Laser Salon and tell them I sent ya! So thankful for Dr. Nelson and the staff at Delete Salon!
Comment below if you have a tattoo that you regret! Or if you have one you love! I love hearing stories!!
Leave a Reply
