I've been doing less and less aftercare as I get more experienced and figure out what works for me. These days, I soak in a hot tub right after the tattoo and again the next day and keep it clean and wrapped for two or three days. Then it's a little cocoa butter for another three or four days and I'm good to go. Since I started doing the hot bath, my tattoos haven't actually healed any faster, that I can tell anyway, but are much less painful. I've always been a fast healer.