Red ink healing question

[el twe]

2 hours ago, Leah said:

Wow, thanks for the advice. I may just start applying some vitamin E and see how that goes. Hydrocortisone has done very little. I’m less worried about it since reading this thread and seeing I’m not alone in this strange saga of red. Did getting tattooed with witch hazel sting like hell? Thanks again. 

Didn't feel like much of anything, really.  Again, I'd strongly suggest cutting out the lotion/cream/etc. for a few weeks and just allow the tattoo to breathe and the skin to heal itself before adding more to it.  After that, I strongly endorse a drop or two of vitamin E oil (as I've seen suggested by a few others on here for weird heals).

[Leah]

Thanks a ton for the help and will do! Have a great weekend! 🙃

[Leah]

Hey guys, so I woke up this morning and the red lost most of its puffiness and now seems like it has small itchy bumps on it. It is way more flush with my skin and I think the bumps aren’t here to stay. I took the advise and left it alone, no lotion or anything just kept it dry so it could breathe. I think folks were right when they said it just wasn’t healed yet. In conclusion, if I do have an allergy to the ink it’s extremely mild. More likely though, red just took a bit longer to heal than black. How are you guys doing? Thanks again for all the help. Thinking about getting an ink color test from my artist because I want an underwater marine life back piece. If I show any reactions I’ll do it black.  Cheers. 

Edited December 4, 2017 by Leah

[Hogrider]

4 hours ago, Leah said:

Thinking about getting an ink color test from my artist because I want an underwater marine life back piece. If I show any reactions I’ll do it black.  Cheers. 

From what I've read, the tiny piece they would do for a color test isn't really a good indicator of potential problems. I know some people take longer to heal some colors, but I don't think that qualifies as an actual allergic reaction; just my two cents. I did a lot of research on documented allergic reactions to tattoos and there is a very small number of medically documented cases.

 

[Leah]

Quick update. The red is getting better and better. Just small dry bumps now. 

[Colored Guy]

I have been limiting my red work, small areas are okay, larger areas are a problem. So I'm going more with oranges and burgundies, no more problem!

[meganrose]

Hi - I too, am having a red reaction. I guess it's an allergy. Here's how it looked after 3 weeks (after the peeling/itching phase normally ends):

 

You can see bumps in the magnolia above. I switched soaps - went to something completely neutral / hypoallergenic and started a steroid cream, which got rid of the bumps. 

 

I'm now on week 5, and the bumps have not returned. I'm still a little itchy and feel tickling sensations. Here's how it looks now - 

 

I could be wrong, but it looks like it is fading quickly - the magnolia. There is also some problematic red ink in the lilac as well. The rose was from a different artist and gave me no problems at all. 

So, 5 weeks in - still not 'right', but on a better path. I hope my body pushes this ink out! Luckily, I hear red fades faster than other colors. 

 

[LittleKitty]

Ouch. That looks painful. I am so happy I haven’t had any adverse reactions to color.

The only issue I’ve ever noticed is that my body eats up pink like no other. It looks like my pink areas were never even tattooed.

[piccalilli]

I have found my body is not a fan of a certain bright yellow (by Solid Ink). Almost everything else on my half sleeve and hikae (afaik all with Solid Ink pigment) are quite healed and flush but the small areas done with this specific ink by machine are still a bit raised and bumpy. They also had more scabs and peeling. We will be using a different slightly richer shade of yellow for accents on my right side after discussing it as my body had no trouble with it. Must be a slight allergy. No trouble with red, the left shoulder healed perfectly well and I also had a significant amount of the same red on my right shoulder done a week ago, no trouble at all.

Edited February 28, 2018 by piccalilli

[Gpots]

I had my feet done and the red took almost 3 months to heal. The rest of the tattoos fully healed after about 4 weeks but the red stayed really tender and bumpy - almost like pimples. After 2 months I went to the doctor and got some steroid cream, applied that for a couple weeks and finally the red area calmed down and healed. It all looks beautiful now and I haven't needed any touch ups but was a major pain in my bum.

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[jesscboone]

On 12/1/2017 at 1:49 AM, el twe said:

@Leah3 weeks is still plenty early as far as healing goes, I'd skip the ointment and wait at least 3 more weeks before starting something else...

I meant to update this thread sooner, but here's the latest on my red ink saga: 

The benadryl cream didn't do a whole hell of a lot for me, other than some short-term relief.  The next suggestion was witch hazel, which I applied probably daily for several months.  Things got better, but only to a point.  Granted, I was told to have some applied with a tattoo machine and needle to get it under the skin, but topical application seemed to help.  I then visited my local shop, got a new tattoo, and asked this artist if he would do as the first artist (who had a guest spot but lives too far away for me to conveniently follow up with, besides the point but still) suggested and actually tattoo the spot with witch hazel.  He graciously obliged, which sparked a conversation with another artist who had a client with a similar problem and suggested rubbing vitamin E oil on the red ink.

The witch hazel tattoo helped a lot right away, and once that felt "healed" I began applying vitamin E oil twice a day, then daily, and now every few days.  Now, there are still some small spots that are a bit raised/hard, but nothing remotely like it was before.  The whole experience has honestly soured my feelings about the tattoo - nothing against the artist or the design, but I can't help but associate it with this 15+ month long healing process...

Sorry for the ramble, and hope it didn't come off as too much of a rant.  Tattoos!

This post has just given me ease. I am dealing with an itchy slightly raised pink and red tattoo from 3 weeks ago tomorrow. I stopped in to see my artist yesterday and show her what I was dealing with, and she recommended that I get a witch hazel tattoo to relieve things. Of course I began the spiral that is Google and you're the FIRST person to mention this practice for these symptoms! Fingers crossed I'll have the same luck. Sorry it took you so long to heal!

[el twe]

@jesscboone Hope your new tattoo heals well.  In the end my tattoo came out fine.  Glad to know this thread continues to help folks.

[Torsie24]

I think it's white that causes me problems. But I do believe certain colours must react differently for different people.