Does getting a tattoo hurt?
The answer is yes, it hurts. It has to hurt.
Let's first understand the medical definition of pain:
Pain is usually caused by noxious stimuli that cause tissue damage. It is an unpleasant subjective feeling and emotional experience related to tissue damage or potential damage.
The least differentiated free nerve endings in the skin and related tissues of the whole body. As nociceptors, they convert various energy forms of noxious stimuli into certain coded types of nerve impulses, along the slow conduction of myelinated sheaths with smaller diameters. and the thinnest unmyelinated afferent nerve fibers, which pass through the dorsal root ganglion to the relevant neurons in the dorsal horn of the spinal cord or the nucleus of the spinal trigeminal tract, and then pass through the contralateral ventrolateral cord to the higher pain center─ ─Thalamus, other brain areas, and cerebral cortex, causing pain sensations and responses.
Such an abstract description actually means that our body has a sensor, which is distributed with various nerve endings. When these endings receive stimulation such as acupuncture, knife cutting, beating, etc., the sensor organizes these received feelings into one The impulses are transmitted along the back, abdomen and other nerve channels to the central processor - the brain. So we feel unhappy and hurt.
The baby finally understands what pain is.
We know that the principle of tattooing is to use a needle with ink to penetrate the dermis of the skin, which is definitely a kind of damage to the skin tissue. Therefore, tattooing is a definite and certain pain.
How painful is a tattoo?
Senior tattoo artist Matthew Ellis once told his clients: The tattooing process is like a cat's claw scratching your skin or a dull knife traveling along the skin. However, after he had been in the industry for more than 15 years and saw all kinds of pain expressions from all kinds of customers, he said: "The pain of is the pain of tattoo ." There is no other reference to compare with, only trying. You won’t know until later. It doesn't feel that bad, and the value of the "get" is more worth it.
As for how painful it is, we also need to quote medical terms: pain threshold
The limit of a field or a system is called a threshold, and its value is called a threshold.
Pain threshold is the lowest value at which painful stimulation causes stress tissue response, which means critical value. That is, when the stimulus is equal to the biological system, although it does not respond to small stimuli, it will react violently when it exceeds a certain limit.
Pain threshold is the body's maximum ability to withstand external force stimulation. The higher the pain threshold, the stronger the ability to withstand pain, and vice versa. Everyone has certain physical differences. Some people feel a lot of pain from injections, while others don't feel much pain. This is because everyone's pain threshold is different.
So, we can say: This varies from person to person and from time to time. Even for the same person at different times, in different situations, and on different occasions, there are great differences, which are affected by complex psychological and social factors.
There are two false propositions that need to be clarified:
Men are more afraid of pain than women
Women are more afraid of pain than men
In fact, pain sensitivity does not distinguish between men and women. It is said that men are more afraid of pain than women because men have fewer physiological and production processes during their growth than women. Pain experience, tolerance is poor. It is often said that women are more afraid of pain than men because women are generally timid and have greater psychological fear.
But there are a few things that are certain:
1. Thin people are more sensitive to pain than fat people.
2. The experience of pain in newborns or young children may affect the developing nervous system and increase their sensitivity to pain later in life. (Reported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH))
3. Pain sensitivity is partly hereditary, and more comes from psychological reasons.
For example, a man who faints when he sees an injection often feels no pain during extremely tense and exciting moments such as fighting. Some people are more sensitive to dull pain, while others are more sensitive to stinging pain. Individuals can do some self-tests to understand.
Grading of Pain
1, The Legend of Pain
The pain that humans can feel is divided into 12 levels. The higher the level, the greater the pain.
Level 1 : Mosquito bites (generally not noticeable)
Level 2 : Surgery after anesthesia (just felt a little touching)
Level 3 : Slight pain, scratched by paper edges or small blades Scratch
Level 4 : Weak pain, such as being slapped with a slap
Level 5 : Mild pain, slapping with a palm, leaving red palm prints
Level 6 : Moderate pain, caused by not paying attention to diet Gastroenteritis, stomach pain
level 7 : strong pain, such as being beaten with a stick, leaving black and purple marks
level 8 : severe pain, large-area bleeding trauma caused by various methods, dysmenorrhea
level 9 : Intense pain, pain in the flesh, tiger stool, bamboo sticks, red iron, etc. Ten of the Manchu tortures
Level 10 : Severe pain, causing physical disability, such as the finger being cut
Level 11 : Extremely severe pain, Visceral pain , such as kidney stones, appendicitis pain and other visceral pain
Level 12 : Unbearable pain, the mother’s feeling during childbirth
Medical classification of pain
The World Health Organization (WT0) divides the degree of pain into:
O degree : no pain;
Ⅰ degree : mild pain, intermittent pain, no medication needed;
II degree : moderate pain, continuous pain, affecting rest, need to take analgesics;
III degree : severe pain, for Continuous pain,
(too general, not as vivid as the legend of Jianghu) 
Where is the pain more? Where does it hurt the most?
The places with strong pain are mostly where nerves gather, around lymphatic tissue and where the skin is relatively thin. In addition, the pain will be enhanced near bones.
Seven-star : genitals, breasts
Five-star : armpits, Cubital fossa, popliteal fossa, groin
Four-star : wrists, ankles, periumbilical area, scalp, face, clavicle, ribs
Pain is related to the length of time. The longer the time, the stronger the pain, so the more complex the pattern, The longer the outline is left, the more painful it will be.
Everyone has a nerve paralysis defense time. After a paralysis time limit is exceeded, the pain will double and explode. In addition, mental state and physical condition are also closely related to pain. Insomnia, fatigue, hangover, and weakness will all make your tattooing process twice as painful.
Will the skill of the tattoo artist reduce the pain?
Yes, the same skin interface will still be different when tattooed by tattooists with different skills. The degree of pain is inversely related to the skill of the master. The direct reason is the depth of the needle and the control of the technique. Generally speaking, the pain will increase exponentially for every half millimeter of depth of the needle. If you encounter a tattoo artist who is not skilled and strong enough, the pain will indeed double.
After understanding all the information about pain, all we need to prepare ourselves is
before tattooing
1. Eat well, sleep well, and feel better.
2. Keep yourself sober (not drunk or taking drugs).
3. Don’t eat on an empty stomach.
4. The skin of the tattooed area remains undamaged and has no wounds.
5. Dress casually and loosely, making it easy to put on and take off.
After tattooing
1. Strictly follow the tattoo artist’s instructions and take care of your skin according to your own conditions.
2. Do not apply any ointment other than special ointment.
3. Do not swim, sauna, bask in the sun, go into the sea and other water-related activities before the wound is healed.
4. It is normal for scabs, peeling, and itching to appear within three to five days. Never pick at the skin until the scabs fall off naturally.
5. If the tattoo is placed on a joint or an area that is easily stretched, be careful not to move too much when the scab is formed, to avoid the scab cracking, and the skin needs to be repaired
When all this is done, congratulations, you have broken the cocoon. Become a butterfly! In addition, for more tattoo related information, download the Tattoo Show APP.
