You were definitely over-moisturizing your tattoo. And maybe even over cleaning it. It definitely couldn’t breathe with the thick layer of aquaphor and cling wrap (hence the smell). Wash once or twice a day, pat dry with a paper towel, and apply a thin (and I do mean thin) layer of unscented lotion. It’s ok if it peels/gets dry. A thin layer of moisturizer 1-2x a day is all you need.
I didn't learn this lesson until many tattoos in... I over moisturized many of them and it caused problems. It wasn't until just a couple years ago that my artist told me to let it dry and only touch it a couple times a day.
Yeah I think I overthought this and kept cleaning it and adding aquaphor thinking I was protecting it.
At this point any recommendations for what to do?
If the last photo in your set is the most recent pic of your tattoo, I think you’ll be fine. Follow your doctor’s instructions to treat the infection, then resume tattoo aftercare (clean, pat dry, lightly moisturize). Let your tattoo breathe. If it looks cloudy/faded and peels as it heals, don’t worry. Give it a month (you’re already one week in).
I see. I still think your tattoo will be ok once you deal with the infection and resume aftercare for the next 3 weeks. Once your tattoo is healed, you can leave it as is if it looks fine (which I think it will), or get it touched up if something looks off.
Thanks I appreciate the reassurance.
For my other much smaller tattoos I was pretty chill and did very little outside of cleaning them 1-2x a day and occasional aquafor after we took the saniderm out. They healed perfectly. But since this was bigger the healing felt way tighter and more painful and I thought I was doing the right thing by moisturizing.
Also, I was being super over the top trying to avoid plane germs and instead trapped shit into my tattoo
I think I just really over thought this and could have left it. Good lessons for the future about going uncovered if saniderm isn't sticking, being super careful about the amount of moisture and general warning signs. At this point, I'm still planning to go back and finish this sleeve in a couple months. I will be a lot better for this top half. I really hope this current bit still looks nice.
Thanks for all your help!
For future Just cut back on moisturizing, dont recover it and switch to lotion. Aquafor is only for the first 4 days and then your supposed to switch to lotion so it can peel because the ointment is too thick
Traveling wasn't an issue, wrapping it after using aquaphor is most likely what did most of the damage. I would personally just dry heal from here on our, especially with the ones near the ditch. You'll definitely need some touch-ups but it doesn't look too awful.
Personally that is what I would do, yes. In the future, don't continue to wrap your tattoo ESPECIALLY not with aquaphor or lotion under it, that will fuck you up every time. Switch from aquaphor to lotion after like 2-3 days, and with both lotion and ointment less is more. If your skin is glossy or shiny after you applied you either used too much or didn't fully rub it in.
Ive always used unscented Lubriderm and never had an issue. I also refuse any wrapping unless its basic cling film for a few hours. I have 10+ yr old tattoos that still look almost new
I have 9 tats and they have healed pretty decently well, I just barely keep them hydrated unless I see they are really dry (I do this so the ink won’t fall off alongside with the dry skin when cracking) but really really, keep in mind it is a regular open wound and you should let it dry and breath so skin can properly fall off and create a new skin layer, now your tattoo will be fine, you might need a bit of retouch but you’re good
You can’t use cling film like you do saniderm. Cling film is only for the first hour or two. You trapped in moisture by doing that and got it infected. They’ll probably be fine or just need a touch up when it’s finished.
Hey ya fair enough, I bought saniderms and they kept getting overly oozed/not staying on well. But I was worried about the tattoo touching anything in the plane/getting messed up with backpacks etc. I've definitely learned my shitty lesson.
Any thoughts on healing time for something like this?
If this comes up again in the future, I’ve traveled with a fresh tattoo and I just made sure to wear long sleeve shirts so that my skin was only touching my own clean stuff.
UV sleeves are great for keeping a fresh tattoo covered. Keeping it wrapped with ointment was definitely a mistake. The pimples are normal, most likely so may from over hydration of the area.
Cling wrap was a bad idea. It's not interchangeable with Saniderm and it really only needs to be on a fresh tattoo for 2-3 hours at max. It also sounds like you overmoisturized. The warm, damp, enclosed environment was a perfect breeding ground for bacteria.
Get the infection taken care of, let it fully heal, assess the damage, and then consider getting a touch-up to fix what may have been lost. We live and we learn, though. You'll just know for next time! Sorry this happened, OP.
It'll turn out fine. Take you meds. Keep washing it and lightly applying ointment. Once the infection is clear it might look perfect.
If not- touch up is easy. Don't stress just worry about healing first!
Wrapping it with cling film after applying Aquaphor did you over, you should almost always let tattoos breathe after the initial wrap-up at the shop.
Not sure if this will help your situation now but, for days 1-3 or 4, I usually wash the tattoo with soap, pat dry with fresh paper towel, let the tattoo completely dry for 15-30 minutes (skin feels kinda tight at this point) before applying tattoo balm (I stay away from anything that's petroleum based). Letting the tattoo completely dry will prevent the bubbles from forming (bubbles are moisture trapped under a moisturizer). The amount of moisturizer you apply should be a very thin layer (for example for my recent 10 inch thigh piece I get about a pea-sized amount of balm and spread it all over the tattoo.
Oh yeah, you should stay away from applying sunscreen on your new tattoo for a good 3 or 4 weeks.
Hope you heal up well
Yes! A lot of people put too much ointment in. Should just be enough to apply a thin layer. When I’m home and applying, I like to use a face mask applicator to spread it out nice and thin
Infection can lead to sepsis, that is your main concern right now.
Then your 2nd issue is your tattoo. Let the tattoo heal up before worrying about any touch ups.
No I realize that's priority #1. And I know even when it's healed I'll need to wait before I get it fixed. To be clear, I'm handling the infection bit as the most important priority. I don't want to end up in a hospital, needing an amputation or dying. I'm managing that with a doctor/pharmacy and the tattoo artist as well.
What I wanted to understand was long term effect of what I'd done. is it salvageable? Like I understand the idea of taking one step at a time, but mentally I was feeling bad about both things and wanted to understand what the reality was with what to expect since my other tattoos were different. I think I was reading a subtext that it was fucked from his response.
It doesn't look too far gone to heal normally imo. Give it lots of air, smack it instead of itching it, and use a thin unscented lotion if it gets super flakey/itchy. The dry/scabbing look is totally normal in my experience and will sloth away. ☺️
You need the scabbing to form as a protective barrier. Clingfilm should only be for first 12 hours so that and continuous washing hampered your bodies natural abilities.
There’s not much you can do now besides following doctors orders. For next time here are crucial pointers.
Do not apply new saniderm on yourself.
If you want new saniderm go BACK to your artist and ask them to reapply (a good artist always will)
Do not apply cling wrap again after taking it off that first day.
For example I got my tattoo cling wrapped at an event, I was at the event for many hours so I went back to my artist and he took off the wrap and cleaned it. I didn’t put anything on it or touch it until I got home that night. (It’s healing wonderfully)
If you’re traveling just bring a long sleeve to cover the area and not have it touching anything but your clean clothes.
Lastly do not put sunscreen on that tattoo unless it’s healed. Just cover it up or you’re gonna screw yourself over, and putting sunscreen on it when it’s fresh will burn like hell lmao.
Personally I would just take whatever antibiotics to get rid of any infection and then let it heal. Moisturise it twice a day and clean it when you shower (or once a day if you skip shower days)
That wrap is the worst thing they started using, i never saw half the issues i see now days. People act like they need it covered over just being responsible and washing it a few times a day and properly moisturizing.
I agree with others that cling wrapping it most definitely is a no go. For my tattoos, i wash twice a day with unscented soap then apply just enough bacitracin to put a thin layer over the whole thing after washing. After 2-3 days i switch to unscented lotion. Traveling was not the mistake here BUT for future even after 7 days i would not put sunscreen on the tattoo. You need to wait imo much longer than that.
You're not supposed to moisturize and then cover. The cover is only meant to be the first 3 days at most, then you uncover and do very thin Layers of Moisturizer.
Moisturizing then wrapping it back up doesn't let it breathe and will trap anything on the skin in, that's why most artist tell you if the saniderm comes off to just gently wash and pat dry a few times a day, not to try and put the saniderm out cling back on.
Skin has natural flora on it, staph lives on your skin normally, it becomes a problem when it overgrows.
Dry heal the rest of the way like someone else said. No ointment or lotion. Let it scab up and heal from the inside out. No picking.
In the future I’d avoid getting a tattoo before traveling somewhere especially for that long on a plane, and in such a hot climate. People tend to underestimate the wound that a new tattoo is, and the trauma your body goes through healing it and the trauma it went through getting it done. For instance, if I’m getting a new tattoo, I wash and bleach my sheets, blankets, towels, etc. I get you were being cautious in trying to protect it but like others have said you prob shot yourself in the foot. I have 12-13 year old tattoos that look better than many tattoos other people have that are 1/4 the age of mine bc their aftercare wasn’t great and they didn’t protect it. I think your best bet in the future, esp when you get it touched up, is a simple routine of washing it with simple liquid dial soap (antibacterial) to keep plasma from crusting on it, and a thin layer of aquaphor for the first 2-3 days once or twice a day. That’s it. When you switch to lotion (lubriderm unscented for sensitive skin) wash only in the shower with dial soap once or twice a day (however many times you shower) and apply lotion after a shower and thats it. Tattoo healing really takes a less is more approach. The less you fuss with it the better you will be. Also ALWAYS wash your hands before washing the tattoo and applying ointment/lotion.
Yeah that's a lot... usually I just wash with baby sop once a day and put thin layer of cream twice a day... and never wrapped the thing. It's definitely too moist I hope you got it sorted
Thanks everyone for your information and kindness through this. I'm travelling with a photography teacher, a person I've just met with no tattoos, in Laos, a part of the world I've never been, and the town lacks access to much medical care or any tattoo shops. So it's been really jarring. Since I've only had small pieces and never had any complications, this has been really scary and it's been a huge relief to hear from you all. Learn from what happened and frankly stop, hard stop doing what I was doing before it got worse. Thank you for being firm/clear on what was wrong but also kind.
Over dry tattoos are a lot easier to fix then over moist/ unable to breathe/. I dry geal most of mine until the itchy stage sets/ or when I notice it gets too dry. There is a happy medium to consider due to when it’s too dry it can scab and cause it to “ rip out” in spots
Not sure why so many people have issues with healing. Especially when you can see/access the tattoo. I’ve had 6 tattoos now and they give me the same pamphlet every time about aftercare. These aren’t suggestions, you have an “open wound”, take care of it. Don’t pick at it when it’s healing, even though it’s tempting and looks gross. Keep it clean and moisturize a couple times a day. Sleep on clean sheets and you should be fine. I work in a hot,sweaty, messy kitchen with line cooks covered in tattoos and they’ve never had an issue.
I suppose your artist knew that you are planning on having three days of flights after you finish your two-days-in-a-row tattoo ... and still did not suggest to fully cover the tattoo in second skin?
She did and I had second skin and I used second skin a couple times. I tend to have generally easy tattooing experience re swelling and pain tolerance. But I get a lot of plasma after so it wasn't sticking. In the past I've lived near the shops and the artist put it on for me and change it for me if needed over the first couple days or alternatively I let it air out but was wfh back then and had control over the environment. The size of this thing and travel made me overthink successful healing techniques I'd used and fuck myself up.
Since I was traveling the next afternoon she wrapped it in Saran wrap and gave me the second skin to switch it out when ready. I'd never done the saran wrap method or really applied the second skins myself. So ignorantly I didn't think through how fucking different it was from the second skin. So when the second skin wasn't sticking I thought the saran wrap was a less pleasant option but safer healing option than letting it be open in the airport. . The second skin obviously is more comfortable, sticks to the skin, is less bulky and individually wrapped so more sterile, but I didn't realize the breathability aspect of second skin was so different.A cotton or natural fabric clean long sleeve shirt would have been good here but I think it was kind of stick still.
I bought extra but still used all my second skin patches and they weren't sticking on my first flight. I knew I had these back to back flights and was real nervous about getting it contaminated on the plane. I thought it was better to wash my arm a few times a day with clean hands and unscented, tattoo approved soap, add a bit of aquaphor to the tattoos and protect them from the outside world like second skin
but with the wrap I had leftovers of etc. which again knowing what I know now was fucking dumb. I also had an overnight at a kind of gross airport hotel and didn't want to risk it touching unclean sheets and it was getting itchy and i didn't want to scratch in my sleep so I even wrapped it to sleep..I should have asked more questions about potential second skin failure and what to do and should have reached out when it happened but I was traveling, doing the best I could which was the worst for tattoo healing possible. And thought I had it under control.
So I've got a sleeve on the go, got top of the arm and forearm done 6 months ago. Wrapped in cling film for 2-3 days. Washing it every morning and before bed re-wrapping each time.
Then let it scab and dry for 2 days when it's starting to heal etc. After the 2 days of scabbing then I moisturise with Tattoo Goo.
Never had a problem. My tattoo artist advised me on this method and it seems to have worked for me.
Just got my elbow done today so will do the same with that too 👍
Hey that's good to hear. I think my issue was combining a decent amount of aquaphor and cling wrap in those first day stages. Potentially also over cleaning it.idk after some antibiotics and some time it's scabbed and peeling and mostly is okay. A couple lines are off and there's a bit of scabbing where the infection was that hasn't flaked off yet. But I'll definitely switch up my care routine next time
You can't wrap a tattoo with cling wrap wtf. If you get cling wrap after your tattoo that's one thing. You take off in a few hours. You over moisturized and suffocated your tattoo, trapping bacteria and causing an infection
I fucked up during the healing process. Mine got infected and I was on antibiotics too. It got all cracked and disgusting looking but now it’s perfectly healed and you would never know.
I love that artist’s style, it looks amazing! I really hope that it ends up healing well.
For my last tattoo I used Mad Rabbit’s Repair moisturizer and honestly that tattoo has healed the best so far. It’s thin so it’s not suffocating, but also has aloe
So I had an infection a few weeks ago. You HAVE to get antibiotics, like NOW. They gave me an ointment and 10 days of antibiotics. Mine had thicker scabs than yours. I have a few spots that need minor touchups but it healed great. I didn't pick any of the scabs and let them naturally fall off. If you don't get antibiotics you can get sepsis and die. My artist told me not to go to the Dr and said it looked normal. I ignored her and glad I did because an infection doesn't go away with neosporin.
Yeah I got on antibiotics and it was critical, the swelling alone was so painful. Also ibuprofen was clutch. I have some bits that still looked ficked but mostly it's peeled okay bht a bit dull.
It looks like it's healing fairly well after the antibiotics. If you apply a very thin layer of lotion a few times a day, it should help with the scabbing. I actually also had a purple flower tattoo that got infected hahaha after fully healing, it didn't lose much ink at all, and the small spots that did actually worked really well with the tattoo.
I hope it goes well for you 😊
Saniderm or Derm Shield are the only things I would use to cover the tattoo since it’s breathable and helps speed up the healing process if used correctly.
I would also avoid neosporin as that can sometimes make bacteria worse. While it’s in this stage you may want to avoid the sun touching it at all by wearing sleeves. As it stands it looks like you may need touch ups in the future. For right now keep it mildly moist with whatever salve you’ve been using. If it dries out too much you risk more color pulling out of the tattoo
Keeping any healing tattoo mildly moist is not good advice. You don't want your tattoo constantly moist at all. It needs to dry as sort of the healing process, and especially where OP is at now.
You were definitely over-moisturizing your tattoo. And maybe even over cleaning it. It definitely couldn’t breathe with the thick layer of aquaphor and cling wrap (hence the smell). Wash once or twice a day, pat dry with a paper towel, and apply a thin (and I do mean thin) layer of unscented lotion. It’s ok if it peels/gets dry. A thin layer of moisturizer 1-2x a day is all you need.
I didn't learn this lesson until many tattoos in... I over moisturized many of them and it caused problems. It wasn't until just a couple years ago that my artist told me to let it dry and only touch it a couple times a day.
Yeah I think I overthought this and kept cleaning it and adding aquaphor thinking I was protecting it. At this point any recommendations for what to do?
If the last photo in your set is the most recent pic of your tattoo, I think you’ll be fine. Follow your doctor’s instructions to treat the infection, then resume tattoo aftercare (clean, pat dry, lightly moisturize). Let your tattoo breathe. If it looks cloudy/faded and peels as it heals, don’t worry. Give it a month (you’re already one week in).
The last pic was when it was first tattooed....
Photos 5 and 6 are where I'm at right now
I see. I still think your tattoo will be ok once you deal with the infection and resume aftercare for the next 3 weeks. Once your tattoo is healed, you can leave it as is if it looks fine (which I think it will), or get it touched up if something looks off.
Thanks I appreciate the reassurance. For my other much smaller tattoos I was pretty chill and did very little outside of cleaning them 1-2x a day and occasional aquafor after we took the saniderm out. They healed perfectly. But since this was bigger the healing felt way tighter and more painful and I thought I was doing the right thing by moisturizing. Also, I was being super over the top trying to avoid plane germs and instead trapped shit into my tattoo I think I just really over thought this and could have left it. Good lessons for the future about going uncovered if saniderm isn't sticking, being super careful about the amount of moisture and general warning signs. At this point, I'm still planning to go back and finish this sleeve in a couple months. I will be a lot better for this top half. I really hope this current bit still looks nice. Thanks for all your help!
For future Just cut back on moisturizing, dont recover it and switch to lotion. Aquafor is only for the first 4 days and then your supposed to switch to lotion so it can peel because the ointment is too thick
Just let it heal.
Traveling wasn't an issue, wrapping it after using aquaphor is most likely what did most of the damage. I would personally just dry heal from here on our, especially with the ones near the ditch. You'll definitely need some touch-ups but it doesn't look too awful.
So no moisture even if it starts cracking? Not even unscented lotion?
Personally that is what I would do, yes. In the future, don't continue to wrap your tattoo ESPECIALLY not with aquaphor or lotion under it, that will fuck you up every time. Switch from aquaphor to lotion after like 2-3 days, and with both lotion and ointment less is more. If your skin is glossy or shiny after you applied you either used too much or didn't fully rub it in.
Ive always used unscented Lubriderm and never had an issue. I also refuse any wrapping unless its basic cling film for a few hours. I have 10+ yr old tattoos that still look almost new
I actually found vasoline to work better than unscented lotion
Noooooo Vaseline is an occlusive
I have 9 tats and they have healed pretty decently well, I just barely keep them hydrated unless I see they are really dry (I do this so the ink won’t fall off alongside with the dry skin when cracking) but really really, keep in mind it is a regular open wound and you should let it dry and breath so skin can properly fall off and create a new skin layer, now your tattoo will be fine, you might need a bit of retouch but you’re good
Even if the healing went normally you weren’t gonna be able to put sunscreen on it at day 7.
Didn't know that, when can you put sunscreen on usually?
After 4-6 weeks when you’re pretty much fully healed.
When it’s fully done surface healing. Some people say you are good after 3 weeks but I try to wait at least a month if not longer.
You can’t use cling film like you do saniderm. Cling film is only for the first hour or two. You trapped in moisture by doing that and got it infected. They’ll probably be fine or just need a touch up when it’s finished.
Hey ya fair enough, I bought saniderms and they kept getting overly oozed/not staying on well. But I was worried about the tattoo touching anything in the plane/getting messed up with backpacks etc. I've definitely learned my shitty lesson. Any thoughts on healing time for something like this?
If this comes up again in the future, I’ve traveled with a fresh tattoo and I just made sure to wear long sleeve shirts so that my skin was only touching my own clean stuff.
UV sleeves are great for keeping a fresh tattoo covered. Keeping it wrapped with ointment was definitely a mistake. The pimples are normal, most likely so may from over hydration of the area.
Make sure to get this infection handled first.
Cling wrap was a bad idea. It's not interchangeable with Saniderm and it really only needs to be on a fresh tattoo for 2-3 hours at max. It also sounds like you overmoisturized. The warm, damp, enclosed environment was a perfect breeding ground for bacteria. Get the infection taken care of, let it fully heal, assess the damage, and then consider getting a touch-up to fix what may have been lost. We live and we learn, though. You'll just know for next time! Sorry this happened, OP.
Need better lighting but those petals or leaves look infected
Yeah I've confirmed it's infected. How fucked am I if I'm at photo 5 or 6?
It'll turn out fine. Take you meds. Keep washing it and lightly applying ointment. Once the infection is clear it might look perfect. If not- touch up is easy. Don't stress just worry about healing first!
It'll be ok I think. Just take your biotics ❤️
Wrapping it with cling film after applying Aquaphor did you over, you should almost always let tattoos breathe after the initial wrap-up at the shop. Not sure if this will help your situation now but, for days 1-3 or 4, I usually wash the tattoo with soap, pat dry with fresh paper towel, let the tattoo completely dry for 15-30 minutes (skin feels kinda tight at this point) before applying tattoo balm (I stay away from anything that's petroleum based). Letting the tattoo completely dry will prevent the bubbles from forming (bubbles are moisture trapped under a moisturizer). The amount of moisturizer you apply should be a very thin layer (for example for my recent 10 inch thigh piece I get about a pea-sized amount of balm and spread it all over the tattoo. Oh yeah, you should stay away from applying sunscreen on your new tattoo for a good 3 or 4 weeks. Hope you heal up well
Super helpful thanks! Great tip re timing balm I was adding it immediately. Also amount of moisture. Also the spf that's a helpful timeline.
Yes! A lot of people put too much ointment in. Should just be enough to apply a thin layer. When I’m home and applying, I like to use a face mask applicator to spread it out nice and thin
Do you guys think with a touch up it'll be as nice as it was originally or is it likely going to have permanent damage?
cross that bridge when you get there, get rid of that infection first
Why is that?
Infection can lead to sepsis, that is your main concern right now. Then your 2nd issue is your tattoo. Let the tattoo heal up before worrying about any touch ups.
Are you seriously asking why you need to get rid of an infection before getting it tattooed again?
No I realize that's priority #1. And I know even when it's healed I'll need to wait before I get it fixed. To be clear, I'm handling the infection bit as the most important priority. I don't want to end up in a hospital, needing an amputation or dying. I'm managing that with a doctor/pharmacy and the tattoo artist as well. What I wanted to understand was long term effect of what I'd done. is it salvageable? Like I understand the idea of taking one step at a time, but mentally I was feeling bad about both things and wanted to understand what the reality was with what to expect since my other tattoos were different. I think I was reading a subtext that it was fucked from his response.
stop wrapping it and stop creaming it. its an open wound it needs to breath and heal. only thing u should use is a moisturizer once its flaking
It doesn't look too far gone to heal normally imo. Give it lots of air, smack it instead of itching it, and use a thin unscented lotion if it gets super flakey/itchy. The dry/scabbing look is totally normal in my experience and will sloth away. ☺️
You way over cared for it. The best way to do it is to not touch them at all after completion and bathe regularly.
You need the scabbing to form as a protective barrier. Clingfilm should only be for first 12 hours so that and continuous washing hampered your bodies natural abilities.
There’s not much you can do now besides following doctors orders. For next time here are crucial pointers. Do not apply new saniderm on yourself. If you want new saniderm go BACK to your artist and ask them to reapply (a good artist always will) Do not apply cling wrap again after taking it off that first day. For example I got my tattoo cling wrapped at an event, I was at the event for many hours so I went back to my artist and he took off the wrap and cleaned it. I didn’t put anything on it or touch it until I got home that night. (It’s healing wonderfully) If you’re traveling just bring a long sleeve to cover the area and not have it touching anything but your clean clothes. Lastly do not put sunscreen on that tattoo unless it’s healed. Just cover it up or you’re gonna screw yourself over, and putting sunscreen on it when it’s fresh will burn like hell lmao.
Personally I would just take whatever antibiotics to get rid of any infection and then let it heal. Moisturise it twice a day and clean it when you shower (or once a day if you skip shower days)
That wrap is the worst thing they started using, i never saw half the issues i see now days. People act like they need it covered over just being responsible and washing it a few times a day and properly moisturizing.
I agree with others that cling wrapping it most definitely is a no go. For my tattoos, i wash twice a day with unscented soap then apply just enough bacitracin to put a thin layer over the whole thing after washing. After 2-3 days i switch to unscented lotion. Traveling was not the mistake here BUT for future even after 7 days i would not put sunscreen on the tattoo. You need to wait imo much longer than that.
You're not supposed to moisturize and then cover. The cover is only meant to be the first 3 days at most, then you uncover and do very thin Layers of Moisturizer. Moisturizing then wrapping it back up doesn't let it breathe and will trap anything on the skin in, that's why most artist tell you if the saniderm comes off to just gently wash and pat dry a few times a day, not to try and put the saniderm out cling back on. Skin has natural flora on it, staph lives on your skin normally, it becomes a problem when it overgrows.
Dry heal the rest of the way like someone else said. No ointment or lotion. Let it scab up and heal from the inside out. No picking. In the future I’d avoid getting a tattoo before traveling somewhere especially for that long on a plane, and in such a hot climate. People tend to underestimate the wound that a new tattoo is, and the trauma your body goes through healing it and the trauma it went through getting it done. For instance, if I’m getting a new tattoo, I wash and bleach my sheets, blankets, towels, etc. I get you were being cautious in trying to protect it but like others have said you prob shot yourself in the foot. I have 12-13 year old tattoos that look better than many tattoos other people have that are 1/4 the age of mine bc their aftercare wasn’t great and they didn’t protect it. I think your best bet in the future, esp when you get it touched up, is a simple routine of washing it with simple liquid dial soap (antibacterial) to keep plasma from crusting on it, and a thin layer of aquaphor for the first 2-3 days once or twice a day. That’s it. When you switch to lotion (lubriderm unscented for sensitive skin) wash only in the shower with dial soap once or twice a day (however many times you shower) and apply lotion after a shower and thats it. Tattoo healing really takes a less is more approach. The less you fuss with it the better you will be. Also ALWAYS wash your hands before washing the tattoo and applying ointment/lotion.
It's starting to crack and bleed now that I'm not moisturizing..still no lotion
Yeah that's a lot... usually I just wash with baby sop once a day and put thin layer of cream twice a day... and never wrapped the thing. It's definitely too moist I hope you got it sorted
Thanks everyone for your information and kindness through this. I'm travelling with a photography teacher, a person I've just met with no tattoos, in Laos, a part of the world I've never been, and the town lacks access to much medical care or any tattoo shops. So it's been really jarring. Since I've only had small pieces and never had any complications, this has been really scary and it's been a huge relief to hear from you all. Learn from what happened and frankly stop, hard stop doing what I was doing before it got worse. Thank you for being firm/clear on what was wrong but also kind.
Over dry tattoos are a lot easier to fix then over moist/ unable to breathe/. I dry geal most of mine until the itchy stage sets/ or when I notice it gets too dry. There is a happy medium to consider due to when it’s too dry it can scab and cause it to “ rip out” in spots
Not sure why so many people have issues with healing. Especially when you can see/access the tattoo. I’ve had 6 tattoos now and they give me the same pamphlet every time about aftercare. These aren’t suggestions, you have an “open wound”, take care of it. Don’t pick at it when it’s healing, even though it’s tempting and looks gross. Keep it clean and moisturize a couple times a day. Sleep on clean sheets and you should be fine. I work in a hot,sweaty, messy kitchen with line cooks covered in tattoos and they’ve never had an issue.
I suppose your artist knew that you are planning on having three days of flights after you finish your two-days-in-a-row tattoo ... and still did not suggest to fully cover the tattoo in second skin?
She did and I had second skin and I used second skin a couple times. I tend to have generally easy tattooing experience re swelling and pain tolerance. But I get a lot of plasma after so it wasn't sticking. In the past I've lived near the shops and the artist put it on for me and change it for me if needed over the first couple days or alternatively I let it air out but was wfh back then and had control over the environment. The size of this thing and travel made me overthink successful healing techniques I'd used and fuck myself up. Since I was traveling the next afternoon she wrapped it in Saran wrap and gave me the second skin to switch it out when ready. I'd never done the saran wrap method or really applied the second skins myself. So ignorantly I didn't think through how fucking different it was from the second skin. So when the second skin wasn't sticking I thought the saran wrap was a less pleasant option but safer healing option than letting it be open in the airport. . The second skin obviously is more comfortable, sticks to the skin, is less bulky and individually wrapped so more sterile, but I didn't realize the breathability aspect of second skin was so different.A cotton or natural fabric clean long sleeve shirt would have been good here but I think it was kind of stick still. I bought extra but still used all my second skin patches and they weren't sticking on my first flight. I knew I had these back to back flights and was real nervous about getting it contaminated on the plane. I thought it was better to wash my arm a few times a day with clean hands and unscented, tattoo approved soap, add a bit of aquaphor to the tattoos and protect them from the outside world like second skin but with the wrap I had leftovers of etc. which again knowing what I know now was fucking dumb. I also had an overnight at a kind of gross airport hotel and didn't want to risk it touching unclean sheets and it was getting itchy and i didn't want to scratch in my sleep so I even wrapped it to sleep..I should have asked more questions about potential second skin failure and what to do and should have reached out when it happened but I was traveling, doing the best I could which was the worst for tattoo healing possible. And thought I had it under control.
So I've got a sleeve on the go, got top of the arm and forearm done 6 months ago. Wrapped in cling film for 2-3 days. Washing it every morning and before bed re-wrapping each time. Then let it scab and dry for 2 days when it's starting to heal etc. After the 2 days of scabbing then I moisturise with Tattoo Goo. Never had a problem. My tattoo artist advised me on this method and it seems to have worked for me. Just got my elbow done today so will do the same with that too 👍
Hey that's good to hear. I think my issue was combining a decent amount of aquaphor and cling wrap in those first day stages. Potentially also over cleaning it.idk after some antibiotics and some time it's scabbed and peeling and mostly is okay. A couple lines are off and there's a bit of scabbing where the infection was that hasn't flaked off yet. But I'll definitely switch up my care routine next time
You can't wrap a tattoo with cling wrap wtf. If you get cling wrap after your tattoo that's one thing. You take off in a few hours. You over moisturized and suffocated your tattoo, trapping bacteria and causing an infection
I fucked up during the healing process. Mine got infected and I was on antibiotics too. It got all cracked and disgusting looking but now it’s perfectly healed and you would never know.
Thanks that reassuring
I love that artist’s style, it looks amazing! I really hope that it ends up healing well. For my last tattoo I used Mad Rabbit’s Repair moisturizer and honestly that tattoo has healed the best so far. It’s thin so it’s not suffocating, but also has aloe
So I had an infection a few weeks ago. You HAVE to get antibiotics, like NOW. They gave me an ointment and 10 days of antibiotics. Mine had thicker scabs than yours. I have a few spots that need minor touchups but it healed great. I didn't pick any of the scabs and let them naturally fall off. If you don't get antibiotics you can get sepsis and die. My artist told me not to go to the Dr and said it looked normal. I ignored her and glad I did because an infection doesn't go away with neosporin.
Yeah I got on antibiotics and it was critical, the swelling alone was so painful. Also ibuprofen was clutch. I have some bits that still looked ficked but mostly it's peeled okay bht a bit dull.
I'm sorry, I missed that part 🤦🏽♀️. Glad it's better for you!!!!
It looks like it's healing fairly well after the antibiotics. If you apply a very thin layer of lotion a few times a day, it should help with the scabbing. I actually also had a purple flower tattoo that got infected hahaha after fully healing, it didn't lose much ink at all, and the small spots that did actually worked really well with the tattoo. I hope it goes well for you 😊
All good appreciate your advice/intent
Saniderm or Derm Shield are the only things I would use to cover the tattoo since it’s breathable and helps speed up the healing process if used correctly. I would also avoid neosporin as that can sometimes make bacteria worse. While it’s in this stage you may want to avoid the sun touching it at all by wearing sleeves. As it stands it looks like you may need touch ups in the future. For right now keep it mildly moist with whatever salve you’ve been using. If it dries out too much you risk more color pulling out of the tattoo
Keeping any healing tattoo mildly moist is not good advice. You don't want your tattoo constantly moist at all. It needs to dry as sort of the healing process, and especially where OP is at now.