How to properly care for a tattoo. How quickly does a tattoo heal? Should I smear a tattoo when it peels off?

THE DURABILITY OF YOUR TATTOO DEPENDS ON YOUR CARE OF IT DURING THE MOST IMPORTANT EARLY DAYS AND WEEKS!

  • Do not lubricate your tattoo with Vaseline, creams containing lanolin or ointments containing petroleum products! And in general, don’t use anything other than what the master gave you!
  • Do not use liquids containing alcohol (do not wipe with alcohol, peroxide and other aggressive acids and alkalis)!
  • Do not rub, scratch or pick at your tattoo!
  • Do not expose your tattoo to direct sunlight, do not swim in open or public bodies of water, do not visit a bathhouse, sauna or hot bath or shower for the first 21 days!
  • For the first 2-3 days, exclude from your diet any foods that increase blood pressure: alcohol, coffee, tea, Red Bull, drugs, Coca-Cola, tea, paracetamol, aspirin, etc.!
  • Avoid sudden physical activity for the first 3-5 days

Make sure that the clothing that comes into contact with your tattoo is clean and soft (not synthetic or wool!).

After completion of the procedure, the tattoo is lubricated by the artist with an antiseptic-healing ointment and a compress is applied for 6-12 hours. Tattooing is considered a minor surgical intervention, so during the first 24 hours there may be some lymphatic discharge, swelling and a local increase in skin temperature.

Wash your hands with soap! After removing the compress from the tattoo, carefully rinse it with cool, cold water, using intimate hygiene gel or baby cream soap (as a last resort, any liquid soap, but not bar soap or shampoo or shower gel). Never use a washcloth for rinsing! Air dry for a few minutes, blotting with a clean paper towel (not a kitchen towel or cotton wool or gauze). Then carefully, without rubbing, apply a thin layer of ointment (blot off excess ointment with a clean paper towel). After an hour, wash the tattoo again, apply a slightly thicker layer of ointment and apply a bandage. After 5 hours, repeat the procedure - remove the bandage, rinse, apply cream, after an hour, rinse and apply a bandage. An hour before bedtime, repeat the procedure and apply a bandage at night. In total, there should be 2 bandages during the day and 1 at night with an hour's breaks between them. Perform these procedures for the first 2 days. On the third day, do not apply a bandage, but continue to rinse and apply a thin layer of ointment 3 times a day. Apply another bandage on the fourth night for the last time. Do not use any more bandages, but sleep in a clean cotton T-shirt or shirt so as not to smear the cream on the bed. Continue washing and lubricating the tattoo until it begins to peel off. After it completely peels off, move on to the next cream (given by the specialist) and lubricate it 2 times a day for the next two weeks.

During the healing process, with proper and careful care, no crusts should form on the tattoo (crusts are tattoo killers), but if they appear (and this is only your fault), do not rip them off or pick them!!!

After 5-8 days, the tattoo will begin to peel off (this is normal, as with a sunburn, burning, tanning..) and itch. Do not attempt to pick or peel the skin. Let it come off naturally by washing and/or applying ointment. New (fresh) skin will soon replace the old one. The colors may fade during this process, but will return to their original brightness once complete healing occurs (21 days).

The ointment protects your tattoo from drying out and leaves the tattoo area softened and moisturized. Always apply a thin layer. Too much will rob the skin/tattoo of breath and may cause ink to leach.

After a few weeks, all the films (crusts) will come off, but the surface will still remain sensitive. Continue regular lubrication with fortified emollient cream.

Exposing your tattoo to direct sunlight is the main cause of tattoo fading, but after a few months you may be able to tan in moderation. Always use a sunscreen with a high level of protection (at least SPF-30), which will provide you with protection from UVA and UVB rays (radiation).

Healing the tattoo until completely healed

Good afternoon, dear reader! This article will talk about tattoo healing and about tattoo care in the first days after application. After all, this moment is very important and responsible. You must understand that your health, as well as the quality of body painting, depends on proper care.

After completing the last session, the tattoo artist applies a protective bandage to the design, which will protect the damaged skin in the first minutes. The work is done. Now only you are responsible for your tattoo and health. What to do and what are the features of tattoo healing, let's try to figure it out.

When to remove a bandage applied in a tattoo parlor?

Very varied. They can be of different sizes, colors, saturation and intensity. So, the storage duration of a protective bandage applied in a tattoo parlor depends on these parameters. The time range is about 4 to 12 hours. But the master should tell you the exact time. If this does not happen, then check with him yourself.

How to wash a tattoo?

We sorted out the bandage. Now the question arises about washing the body pattern. The tattoo is washed after removing the bandage using soap and warm boiled water. There are opinions that it is better to wash fresh hair with products containing alcohol.

However, this is a misconception and should not be done. After removing the bandage, rinse the tattoo with clean hands and let it dry. Do not dry it with a towel under any circumstances. This will help avoid introducing bacteria into damaged skin.

How to lubricate a tattoo?

After waiting for the tattoo to dry, the moment comes when you need to smear it on healing ointment for tattoos. What ointment to use? The master who did it should answer this question for you.

However, if for some reason you have not received this information, we will list the most popular drugs. These include professional ointment “Tattoo Goo” or you can use “D-Panthenol”, “Bepanten”.

These products are healing and antibacterial, therefore for tattoo healing will fit perfectly. After applying the ointment to the tattoo, you need to cover it with a protective film. This procedure must be performed two to three times a day, for two to three days. Remember that sterility and cleanliness are important in this process.

It is these parameters that can guarantee quality and safe tattoo healing. On the 3rd or 4th day there is no need for a protective film, but you still need to apply a healing ointment, just in a smaller layer.

Is it possible to remove the scab from a tattoo?

No. You cannot rip it off, scratch it or touch it. These actions can damage the tattoo and the entire work will be ruined. Yes, the crust will itch and attract attention in every possible way, but you need to be patient and wait until it falls off on its own. It forms somewhere on the third day after the tattoo is applied.

What to do if you peel off the crust from a tattoo?

There are times when the crust gets peeled off accidentally. You endured it, didn’t scratch it or rip it off, but something unexpected happened and it tore off. What to do in this case? Gently remove the blood, apply a small layer of healing ointment and apply a protective bandage.

After complete healing of the tattoo, carefully examine the drawing. In cases with a peeled crust, blurring of the outline of the design may occur, as well as damage and pallor of the body painting. Don’t be sad about this, just contact your tattoo artist and sign up for a correction.

He will be able to restore the damaged area without anyone noticing. A peeled crust can leave a mark in the form of a scar, and then you become the owner of a tattoo with a scarring effect. The scarring technique is also popular these days, but not many people decide to undergo this procedure.

How long does it take for a tattoo to heal?

Tattoo healing depends on the size, intensity and density of the pattern, as well as on the body’s ability to regenerate tissue. It usually takes about 15 days for the tattoo to completely heal. Therefore, try to spend these days in such a way as not to harm your masterpiece.

The effect of solarium and sun on an unhealed tattoo

Sun rays and ultraviolet radiation in a solarium can ruin your unhealed tattoo. How, you ask? The fact is that these factors lighten the pigment of the design and after complete healing the tattoo may become pale. Therefore, try to avoid such influences, but rather spend these days at home in your home.

In cases where circumstances force you to be in a solarium or in the open air, try to hide your body image under clothing or use sunscreen. True, it is not recommended to apply sunscreen to a tattoo that has not healed, due to possible infection of the wound.

After all, these products are not antibacterial. However, if you find a sunscreen that is antibacterial, you can use it with confidence.

How to take a shower with a fresh tattoo?

Every person who has a fresh tattoo faces this question. After all, you will have to swim, so protecting your fresh tattoo is simply necessary. To do this, before visiting the bathroom, you need to treat the area of ​​the fresh tattoo with a water-repellent agent.

Regular Vaseline works great for this task. After processing it, you need to wrap the tattoo with film and apply a bandage. It is not recommended to swim in salty sea water with a fresh tattoo, and you should not stand in the shower for a long time, even if you have processed the design well.

If you do not follow these tips, then your masterpiece is guaranteed to turn pale. After all, unhealed tattoo is not properly protected by the skin and water easily penetrates and washes away the pigment, and can also cause swelling and infection.

The effect of alcohol, drugs and exercise on tattoo healing

While the tattoo is healing It is necessary to avoid high blood pressure in the body, as this can lead to the squeezing out of the coloring pigment from the skin. Alcohol and medications raise blood pressure. Therefore, during this period you should refrain from taking medications and disorderly drinking.

As for physical activity, the situation is similar. During physical activity, the pressure in the body definitely rises, plus on top of everything you sweat a lot, and sweat will not only wash away the pigment, but will also create all the conditions for the tattoo to fester.

Consequences of improper tattoo care

The main consequences of improper tattoo care are inflammation, the appearance of purulent discharge, paleness and blurring of the tattoo design. There are cases of serious infection and the development of gangrene, but this happens when tattoo care is completely lacking and the rules of normal hygiene are not followed.

If the tattoo is not properly cared for, about 60 percent of the coloring pigment placed in the skin will eventually be lost. Accordingly, the drawing will be very pale and blurry. And you will have to do everything again, waste time, money, etc.

The norm for pigment loss is 10 percent, but this is only possible with careful and proper care of the tattoo, so if you want a clear picture, then do not neglect the tips described above.

Is the tattoo artist responsible?

Know! If you did not provide proper care for the tattoo and its appearance did not meet your expectations, then the artist has nothing to do with it and he does not bear any responsibility for this. Claims can be made for poor quality work and failure to provide advice on tattoo care and healing.

If all these points were completed by the tattoo artist, then further responsibility lies entirely with you.That's why, take tattoo healing very seriously and your body design will delight you and surprise others for a long time!

If, after applying a tattoo to the skin, the tattoo peels off, then people who are unaware of the intricacies of care and recovery after the procedure may sound the alarm. Indeed, it is extremely unpleasant to get some complications, a distorted image, or even lose a drawing. This is what one would think when such symptoms appear. But the situation is completely different and nothing bad happens. Therefore, it is worth finding out in advance why the tattoo is peeling, what the reasons are and what to do in such a situation.

Why did the tattoo start to peel off?

This is a normal and natural process. During the procedure, tattoo machine needles will pierce the skin about 1000 times every minute. And, as a result, the entire area of ​​the skin where the tattoo is located is an open wound.

The body of any person has the property of self-healing. Those. the open wound will be covered with a protective layer of rough skin. Under this layer, a healthy layer of skin will be restored. And when it reaches its normal state, the protective layer will come off. Those. a kind of “molting” will begin. This is the reason why the tattoo peels off.

As an example, we can cite a situation that is well known to everyone - falling on your knees, which results in abrasions. The injured cover becomes covered with a crust, but after some time these crusts fall off. This situation is almost completely identical to that considered in this article.

When does a tattoo start to peel?

Everything is very individual and depends purely on the genes of each individual person. For some, this process may begin just a few days after the tattoo procedure. And someone will notice the appearance of the first peelings no earlier than in a week.

How long does it take for a tattoo to peel off?

This process is not that long. On average, peeling should stop within a week. But, again, a lot depends on skin care and the location of the tattoo. Thus, tattoos located on rough areas of the skin take a little longer to heal than on soft ones.

What to do if the tattoo starts to peel off?

If the tattoo peels off, then you shouldn’t panic, run to the artist with a complaint, or go to a medical facility. Everything is fine, the tattoo healing process is in full swing. At this stage, the main thing is to do no harm. Just a few simple rules will help you survive this period without annoying consequences:

  • Hydration. The use of pharmaceutical ointments and lotions will help make it easier to go through this stage of healing. Softened and moisturized skin will recover faster.
  • Hygiene. A very important postulate when caring for tattoos is cleanliness. A clean tattoo heals much faster, which means it stops peeling faster.
  • Patience. There are no options! A tattoo can only be obtained using this method. Therefore, for the sake of the treasured drawing, you will have to be patient until the skin stops peeling.

Contents of the article: classList.toggle()">toggle

A tattoo is a permanent permanent design on the body, a bright decorative installation with its own characteristic features, style and method of production. Permanent tattoos applied to the skin require not only the professionalism of the artist during the main procedure, but also proper care during healing - only by following a number of recommendations, you can achieve quick and relatively painless regeneration of the epithelium without any negative consequences.

How long does it take for a tattoo to heal? How to properly care for a tattoo? What products and ointments can be used? What to do if the tattoo heals poorly and complications appear? You will read about this and much more in our article.

Stages of healing

A person’s skin is unique in its own way - its recovery time after getting a tattoo can vary over a fairly wide time frame. The regeneration process depends on the individual characteristics of the body, the current state of local immunity of the epithelium, the professionalism of the tattoo artist applying the image, the quality of coloring pigments, the use of additional means of modulating skin restoration and other factors.

How long does a tattoo take to heal? As practice shows, on average the healing process of a tattoo takes 5-9 days, in this case, the epithelium is completely restored in 3-5 weeks - after this period, any restrictions and special means for treating the skin are canceled. Below is a photo of the tattoo before and after healing.

Tattoo healing can be divided into 3 stages:

How can you tell if a tattoo has healed? A tattoo is considered healed if all the “husks” have come off from the skin and the shine and dryness of the epithelium on the treated surface have disappeared.

Proper tattoo care

Proper care of a tattoo reduces the risks of possible complications and negative consequences for the skin that may occur during the epithelial healing procedure tenfold.

The main stages of tattoo care with basic timing include:


  • Secondary processing. After washing and drying the skin, apply ointment to it. Typical options are Solcoseryl or Bepanten. As an alternative, it is recommended to use special professional healing gels, such as Doctor Pro. After secondary processing and absorption of the ointment, cream or gel, it is necessary to cover the surface again with a bandage (absorbent diaper, since cling film is no longer suitable for this purpose).

The absorbent diaper is used until the release of pigment and ichor stops and a thin protective film forms on the skin with compaction of the epithelium.

Starting from the second stage of healing (disappearance of discharge, appearance of a protective film) and until the end of the third, it is advisable to keep the applied pattern moisturized (without regular washing with water), using the above-described non-greasy ointments, creams or gels, applying them every 6-8 hours to the epithelium .

It is necessary to carry out primary and secondary treatment of the skin during the healing process of the tattoo according to the above-described scheme for 1-2 days, every 4 hours and at least 3 times a day.

As it heals, the protective crust will peel off and fall off in fragments - it is forbidden to tear it off in any way; by 7-9 days it will completely disappear on its own. From the 10th day (the tattoo has already healed, but the skin continues to recover), Dexpanthenol can be applied as a preventative measure 1-2 times a day for another 20 days.

Tattoo healing creams

Below is a list of the most well-known, effective and recommended products that can be applied to the skin to heal a tattoo.

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Creams and ointments for tattoo healing:


What to do if the tattoo does not heal for a long time?

As mentioned above, the average healing time for a tattoo ranges from 5-7 days, while the skin completely recovers much longer - on average, this process takes from 20 days to 1 month. However, in some cases, the tattoo does not heal for very long.

Reasons for long tattoo healing:

  • Failure to follow recommendations for the procedure for caring for a tattoo;
  • Individual characteristics of the body, along with slow metabolic processes in soft tissues and the presence of chronic hidden skin diseases;
  • Poor competence of the tattoo artist who carried out the procedure for applying the graphic installation in an unprofessional manner;
  • Introduction of secondary bacterial infections through damaged skin.

What to do if the tattoo does not heal for a long time:

  • Try to adjust measures to speed up the healing of the skin, adhering to the basic recommendations for caring for the tattoo;
  • If there is no positive effect, contact a dermatologist.

Features of care when using Suprasorb film and its analogues

In addition to the classic, time-tested methods of caring for a newly applied tattoo to the skin, modern science offers innovative professional methods for quick and easy healing of the epithelium, which eliminate the need for regular changes of bandages and primary treatment of the skin surface. We are talking about healing tattoos using a special protective film Suprasorb and its analogues - T2Paddy, Saniderm, Dermalize Pro and so on.

Film for tattoo healing has its own characteristics: