(no subject)

[some_stars]

Because I feel awkward calling the studio back, and the internet has ten thousand opinions, so I figured I would ask my own personal internet: I've reached the itchy phase, which I am given to understand is normal. I switched from Aquaphor to Lubriderm this morning, going by the general timeframe of the little aftercare instruction sheet I got. The itchiness isn't terrible but it's annoying, and I was wondering if using cocoa butter or shea butter instead of a lotion would help with that by keeping it more moisturized, but of course the internet has about twenty opinions on this and half of them are extremely dire.

I've really just been giving myself fits over the entire aftercare thing, because I would prefer EXTREMELY SPECIFIC directions with absolutely no room for user error. Like, do I continue to wash it with antibacterial hand soap the whole time it's healing, or is that just the first time right after I take the bandage off, or what? When exactly should I switch from ointment to lotion, how often should I put lotion on and is there a point where it's too much, exactly what should it be looking and feeling like so I know nothing is going wrong? Like, EXACTLY. I realize there aren't actually known specific answers for a lot of this stuff but that does not help my feelings.

IDK, I just wish every tattoo studio ever would get together and come up with actual standardized protocols because this is just ridiculous. Ten different studio websites should not be giving me ten different diametrically opposed answers. (How can more than two things all be diametrically opposed to each other? I don't know but they CAN.) According to some of them I've already done at least four things that will destroy my tattoo forever. I just find it so frustrating because it's so unprofessional. You guys, thousands of you have been doing this for decades, there is NO WAY you couldn't come up with some more consistent data. Or admit that there are multiple non-catastrophic ways to care for a tattoo, that would also be nice.

This began as a question but now I think I'm just pissed off. DAMMIT I DEMAND STATISTICS.

(I really like my artist and they gave semi-clear instructions, which would be clear for anyone less anxious and obsessive than me. But I don't think "how to care for your decorative wound" is a question that should be answered with anecdotes and confirmation-biased memories and personal trust.)

(I still want to get another one, though. Tattoo addiction: the only needle-borne disease that can survive an autoclave.)

Comments

[settiai]

I'll be at the itchy stage myself by Sunday or Monday, so I can definitely help here. If it helps, all of my tattoos have ended up fine using this method, and I've had eight or nine sessions over the last several years. :)

Okay, by the time it's starting to itch, it's definitely time to switch to lotion so that's absolutely fine. I honestly wouldn't recommend cocoa butter or shea butter, simply because they're thicker and wouldn't let the tattoo breathe properly. That's a very important part of the healing process.

As for the itchiness, I do have a recommendation if it gets too bad. Wherever it itches, lightly flick it with your fingers or swat it with the palm of your hand. That will usually help keep it bearable if the lotion isn't doing enough.

Personally, I use antibacterial soap in the shower for the first five days or so, just until it's done peeling. Then, after that point, I switch to a plain, unscented body wash or soap (like Dove) for at least the next few weeks. You want to apply the lotion four or five times a day, enough that it doesn't dry out but not enough that it's completely soaked. If, after fifteen minutes or so the lotion still hasn't completely sunk into your skin (i.e., there's still a definite film on top of the tattoo that you can see and/or feel), then you're applying it too frequently and should probably give it more time between reapplying it.

Do you have any other questions? I'll do my best to answer them as specifically as possible for you.

(here via "latest things")

[redbird]

My hunch is that they're each giving one set of instructions to avoid people looking at the sheet and thinking "but should I do A, or B, or C?" Though not being precise will get in the way of that.

Part of the problem is that there are a lot of places where either people don't think in terms of testing and comparing in any scientific way, or there's no organization or budget for it. For example, I gather there's no particular basis for all those numbers about "target heart rate." Coaches will say "I know this works because so and so did it this way and won contests" and assume that the specific bit of exercise/practice made a difference. (This is separate from the places where what "everyone knows" will stand up to large amounts of actual data, because people are resistant to being told that they've been wrong about things.)

/natter

[lilacsigil]

From a wound-care perspective:

Once there is no open wound, stop using antibacterial anything.
When there is itchy skin, moisturise it lightly and often.
In the case of tattoos, don't use moisturiser with vitamins A or D for at least a week because it can reduce the wanted scarring of the actual tattoo.

[vass]

All I have is anecdote, but: what just about everyone in Australia uses is Bepanthen, which is an ointment normally used for nappy rash (US = diaper rash.) It's antiseptic, antifungal, and moisturising. I have no idea what the US equivalent would be.