forearm tattoo healing questions...
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hey everyone, I am new to the forum and just have a few questions. 6 days ago I got a tattoo on the upper part of my forearm, goes on areas of my elbow ditch and then wraps a bit onto my lower bicep. I expected tons of pain since some of my other tattoos have been really painful (none that are known to be bad and the ones that should be bad have never been bad for me). The elbow ditch obviously wasn't fun but not as bad as I feared.
Anyhow, what has shocked me is the amount of pain since I got the tattoo. It throbs, aches, hurts like hell to bend my arm and really just sucks. I typically heal really fast, start itching and flaking on day 3 then looks good about a week out but this time I got a good sized thin scabbing going on, which pretty much flaked off the past 2 days, now it is shiny and flaking/peeling again, which has never happened to me (never peeled 2x).
The biggest issue is how bad it still hurts. I can barely touch it when washing it or putting lotion on. It really hurts when I wake up, probably bc I am bending my arm in the night and then it throbs whenever I put my arm down to my side.
It doesn't look infected or anything, just ugly and hurts. Is the forearm a hard place to heal just bc you use it alot? I know the elbow ditch is a PITA, but my real pain in the upper forearm area. The ditch was just splitting every time I bend/opened my arm but that seems scabbed now.
Anyhow, so my question is if you guys have had similar pain with healing in this area? And since the first layer came off, it is SO bright, way brighter than I want and more so than the first day I got. I hope it chills out. This is the first tattoo I have that I stare at all day, so I am obsessing a bit, I feel, haha.
Anyhow, what has shocked me is the amount of pain since I got the tattoo. It throbs, aches, hurts like hell to bend my arm and really just sucks. I typically heal really fast, start itching and flaking on day 3 then looks good about a week out but this time I got a good sized thin scabbing going on, which pretty much flaked off the past 2 days, now it is shiny and flaking/peeling again, which has never happened to me (never peeled 2x).
The biggest issue is how bad it still hurts. I can barely touch it when washing it or putting lotion on. It really hurts when I wake up, probably bc I am bending my arm in the night and then it throbs whenever I put my arm down to my side.
It doesn't look infected or anything, just ugly and hurts. Is the forearm a hard place to heal just bc you use it alot? I know the elbow ditch is a PITA, but my real pain in the upper forearm area. The ditch was just splitting every time I bend/opened my arm but that seems scabbed now.
Anyhow, so my question is if you guys have had similar pain with healing in this area? And since the first layer came off, it is SO bright, way brighter than I want and more so than the first day I got. I hope it chills out. This is the first tattoo I have that I stare at all day, so I am obsessing a bit, I feel, haha.
Last edited by magnolia_girl on Sun Apr 07, 2013 5:50 pm, edited 1 time in total.
- peterpoose
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Hey mate welcome to forumsmagnolia_girl wrote:hey everyone, I am new to the forum and just have a few questions. 6 days ago I got a tattoo on the upper part of my forearm, goes on areas of my elbow ditch and then wraps a bit onto my lower bicep. I expected tons of pain since some of my other tattoos have been really painful (none that are known to be bad and the ones that should be bad have never been bad for me). The elbow ditch obviously wasn't fun but not as bad as I feared.
Anyhow, what has shocked me is the amount of pain since I got the tattoo. It throbs, aches, hurts like hell to bend my arm and really just sucks. I typically heal really fast, start itching and flaking on day 3 then looks good about a week out but this time I got a good sized thin scabbing going on, which pretty much flaked off the past 2 days, now it is shiny and flaking/peeling again, which has never happened to me (never peeled 2x).
The biggest issue is how bad it still hurts. I can barely touch it when washing it or putting lotion on. It really hurts when I wake up, probably bc I am bending my arm in the night and then it throbs whenever I put my arm down to my side.
It doesn't look infected or anything, just ugly and hurts. Is the forearm a hard place to heal just bc you use it alot? I know the elbow ditch is a PITA, but my real pain in the upper forearm area. The ditch was just splitting every time I bend/opened my arm but that seems scabbed now.
Anyhow, so my question is if you guys have had similar pain with healing in this area? And since the first layer came off, it is SO bright, way brighter than I want and more so than the first day I got. I hope it chills out. This is the first tattoo I have that I stare at all day, so I am obsessing a bit, I feel, haha.
My sleeve healed just fine, I had the same experience as you on my ankle.
Id say make sure its not infected, it may not be and you just heal different there. We are all different but get it checked out.
Pictures would be useful also
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haha, sorry...I forgot to add the picture. I added it to my original post. But yeah, it definitely isn't infected. It isn't swollen, hot, angry looking or anything. Just hurts like hell.
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Yeah, my tattoo is very fine lined with delicate detailing...she was very gentle and worked quickly, least painful tattoo I've ever got. Maybe it was all the tiny detailing and she is super good at shading/coloring, so maybe the multiple shades in such small areas? Either way I've been shocked at the how sore I am. Not swollen since day 2 but just very sensitive and tender, something I haven't experienced with my other tattoos.
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Going to the doctor is always a good option, but I would see the artist first. Also, I would use Aleve twice a day and a cold pack on the tender area several times a day for a few days. I'm really lucky; I've always been a quick healer.
This happened to me on the last tattoo I got. For the first time ever I actually peeled twice. The same thing happened to my wife who was tattooed the day before. The common denominator was that both artists used Eternal Ink. I'm not sure if that had anything to do with it or not, but it was strange that we both had that experience and had never had that happen before. Eventually it healed but it took a good 4 weeks.magnolia_girl wrote: Anyhow, what has shocked me is the amount of pain since I got the tattoo. It throbs, aches, hurts like hell to bend my arm and really just sucks. I typically heal really fast, start itching and flaking on day 3 then looks good about a week out but this time I got a good sized thin scabbing going on, which pretty much flaked off the past 2 days, now it is shiny and flaking/peeling again, which has never happened to me (never peeled 2x).
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I have NO idea what ink she used but it feels much better now. Thanks for all the comments! I have one area that is healing weird, which I'm bummed about but the pain is gone.
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Thank you so much...I am super happy with it!kalash wrote:That is a really nice tattoo btw.
- iagotheinsane
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That's normal. You will get areas to scab or hurt more than others.
What I do is put some aloe vera type lotion twice a day. Don't wash it too much because it slows the healing process.
What I do is put some aloe vera type lotion twice a day. Don't wash it too much because it slows the healing process.