Have my Tattoo Removed

had my first treatment six weeks ago, going for the next tomorrow.

the laser hardly hurt (it’s a small tattoo on my ankle) and i can already see a slight difference!

just a few more treatments, then it should be faded enough for me to be done and satisfied.

I got a tatto when I was in the military, but now I want to get it off. It is my name written in 1/2” by 1/2”, 5 letters with a border around it. It’s all in black, and I got it 10 years ago. I started disliking it about 5 years ago, but didn’t know what to do about it. I know it’s expensive, but I will start looking around for the best prices.

I got mine done in October and like I thought it would be fun to do something impulsive, expressive, and meaningful at the same time – but i’m not naturally all of these things – in fact i normally think things through SO MUCH! so lately all i do is think about my tattoo and when i go out in public that is all i can think about and it makes me self conscious because i am not really the typical tattoo esque person and i hate when people suddenly judge me the moment they see it. Plus I’m jewish and didnt care about not being buried in a jewish cemetery when I wrote this but NOW I DO! And i’m going to israel next summer and i fear i wont be respected because of my dumbass decision to be impulsive. I already told my mom i dont want it anymore and i did something dumb. (I’m 16, and I have an om symbol on my foot and it’s beautiful but i just dont want it permanent any more i would have been better with henna)So now I’m convinced I want to spend the next 3 years of my life spending a vigorous amount of my money on this – because obviously no one else is paying for this i made the mistake myself - and i cant go barefoot and feel free around my relatives until its gone becausde I love them so much and dont want to be angry at me for being so stupid.) so now i’m sitting here googling prices to sell prescription drugs so i can potentially make quick money from stupid rich white drug wannabes in my school who will snort this shit. (i know it’s so dumb but honestly it would be a one time thing and I dont even do drugs so I’d probably end up cutting the pills in half so they take lower dosages, i’d be a grandma drug dealer) gosh i hate saying that I’m about to sell drugs. Should i make the effort to work hard and tackle on more than one job – and not drug dealing guys hoping to get the tattoo removed before I’m 21 or should I just live with it and maybe get it removed later in life risking a significant lifetime of insecurity over this damn symbol of inner peace which is giving soooo much war inside? dfklsjfksjfksdjfksdjf

i have 6 tattoos and i love all them except the one i got when i was 14, and that just happens to be the biggest most visible one on my arm. im 18 now. the tattoo i hate is homemade and i got it during my crazy teen era to make my grandpa mad. It did work though… ive had it almost 5 years now. i heard if its homemade and not a new tat its easier to remove.does any know if this is true?? Right now there is NO way i could afford laser treatments. Does anyone know of any cream that works? so far i havent heard any positive things. I’m so desperate today i was thinking of burning it off the iron. i just hate it!! if any one has any advice please let me know.

I’m really thinking I might go for covering rather than removing. I’d rather be tattoo free in the long run. But if that is 10-15 years away (due to limitations in current technology and cost) I’d rather have something I don’t hate in the mean time. I put aside enough to get a tattoo a bit bigger than the current one. Don’t know what I want, and have to really resolve how to do this without being infulenced by the boyfriend.

I’M ENGAGED!!!! Hooray- but now with a wedding looming (16 months or so away) I need to start the removal process ASAP or I will have this tattoo in my wedding photos- no makeup ever seems to cover it. Plus, it’ll be nice to take this off from over my heart and give myself as a clean slate to my dear Sam… well, minus the other three tattoos- which I’m totally keeping!

I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately. For some reason its feeling more and more urgent.

I think I may reprioritize this above paying off my student loans, which means I’ll start really on this as soon as 2007…

Also, I was thinking that it would be much less expensive to get my tattoo covered than removed. I’m not sure about this. My boyfriend (who has HUGE tattoos) is encouraging me to get it covered and almost has me convinced, but I really don’t think its a good idea to get a tattoo at the suggestion of a boyfriend. Talk about regret when that inevidable breakup rolls around.

Anyway, I really want clean pure skin. Even with the best removal processes, I could spend thousands and never achieve that.

My second choice would be to cover it, but cover it with nothing. While the boyfriend is recomneding covreing my bumble bee with a nature picture or a design of some sort I’m starting to consider a simple black cirlce or square. I like the simplicity and the asymitry and the strangeness of a 2 inch diameter circle on one sholder. While getting more, tattoos in effort to be tattoo-free seems really stupid – a tattoo of nothing is acutally quite appealing. And it would only cost way less than removal – meaning I could be free of the tattoo that I hate sooner rather than later.

I don’t know. This is going to take some serious thought.

At my interview today, I noticed it peeking out of my blouse just when I was trying to look like an executive. Not the best impression in conservative DC to have a tattoo on under your suit in a visible location. I miss being more “hardcore” when it gave me more credibility, not less. But if I keep the others and just eliminate the one standing in the way of professional work clothes and cute strapless dresses, I can still remember me- hardcore or no.

Just spent an hour at the MAC counter and spent a pretty penny, but I have makeup that convincingly covers it up for evening. Thank heavens- now I can wear some cute clothes and not be the most conservative girl in the world.

I loved my tattoo for a while, but now… It feels childish. How can I ever look classy and refined with a tattoo? I’ll never get to wear a backless dress or a strapless wedding gown without telling everyone “hey, look how trendy I was in 1998!”

I want to have it removed, but I’m conflicted about it. I’m a big believer in living with the decisions that you make. I got this knowing that it was something I would have to live with forever.

I will have my tattoo removed, but I’ll wait until I have the money to burn. Its not high on my priority list, but it is there, hanging over me.