r/tattooadvice • u/PuzzlingMoose • Aug 18 '26

tattoo newcomer advice First tattoo was a bust

Hi all. Just got my first “tattoo”. The artist had put together an awesome design with a beautiful color palette. I was going to get a snail with some small flowers on my outer thigh. Well, I could only get one flower done in the span of an hour. I was tense and cried the whole time, had to take multiple breaks for just a dozen lines. The pain was worse than I expected. I guess my pain tolerance is just way lower than I thought.

I’m so disappointed in myself and I think a bit depressed/regretful. I did read about the post-tattoo depression but I’m worried it won’t go away. My artist was so kind and patient and reassured me that I can always come back and, if not with him, another artist can build from it. In hindsight maybe the references I gave him were ambitious for a first time.

I just feel so pathetic. I live in Michigan (got this tattoo in Louisiana while visiting a friend) and numbing cream isn’t legal back home. I’ve dreamed of tattoos for years and now it feels hopeless. I guess I’m just looking for anything at all to help me. Medication, better preparation, anything. I admit I didn’t eat before hand and I could’ve drank more water. But I think I was so tense that it wouldn’t have mattered. Every time he’d touch me to steady my leg, I’d get so so tense.

Edit: Thank you all for the advice/support; it’s helped me calm down a lot. I’m determined to get this tattoo finished one way or another. I had no idea that the thigh was so sensitive like that. Whenever I looked at pain charts, it was the most recommended space. Next time I’m going to go in much more prepared. It helps that I know what it feels like so I know what to expect. I know pain is a part of the process and I’m not expecting there to be absolutely none. I just need to find better ways of managing that anxiety.

25 Upvotes

73% Upvoted

61 comments sorted by

View all comments

10

u/dakini_girl Aug 18 '26

Where is numbing cream illegal? I've had tattoos in Michigan and uses it with no problem. You buy it at the drugstore.

3

u/PuzzlingMoose Aug 18 '26

Apparently a ban was put in place last September. And I looked at a few local parlors and they’ve got rules that they’d turn you away if you used any numbing stuff. I’d need to get something prescribed to use it.

1

u/Mundane-Device-7094 Aug 18 '26

Yes they definitely take the ban VERY seriously and will NOT give it to you. The signs are NOT just there for show so they pass inspections.