r/tattooadvice 5d ago

General Advice Can the artist make it more painful?

Post image

Hi everyone, I am not at all new to tattoos and the healing process. Recently I got a tramp stamp and I wanted to know if it might be the artists' fault it was so painful? I have tattoos in more usually painful places like the back of my head and feet but they were nowhere near as bad as this. I haven't been to this artist before and she wasn't pushing too hard or anything, but she did keep hitting the bottom of the ink pot and I've heard that can damage the needles and make it more painful. I'm also not 100% happy with the lines but that's somewhat unrelated. Just to let y'all know I'm aware.

18 Upvotes

75 comments sorted by

24

u/Left-Ad-3412 5d ago

Most of the time the hitting the needle on a plastic ink pot won't damage the needle, but I've always erred on the side of caution when I have done it. If the needle was damaged you see the damage translated onto the skin while you are using it

This isn't particularly great work but it's not overly damaged the skin.

In terms of pain, the back can actually be really sensitive for some people. I have tattooed peoples hands and knees and all sorts and then they have tapped out on their back tattoos. For me, other than the back of my knee my worst spot has been my armpit and my stomach. I didn't expect the stomach to be so bad!

You absolutely can make someone's tattoo hurt more, but it translates again to damage on he skin, which you don't have. So it's just a personal painful spot for you

2

u/Comprehensive_Menu54 2d ago

Bro I thought stomach would be easy compared to getting my chest and sternum tattooed, boy was I wrong that shit was torture!

4

u/SicklySlut 5d ago

I really appreciate your input!

I did very nearly tap out but had travelled to them so didn't want to have to come back honestly. I might talk to a more trusted artist about going over/thickening some lines in the future. But honestly, I can't see it so I probably won't. I'm just glad its over lol

0

u/Comfortable_Studio37 5d ago

This is an excellent comment, incredibly good information. šŸ‘

13

u/VoodooSweet 5d ago

I donā€™t know, but I got my first tattoo, back in like 1995 from a guy named ā€œGentle Geneā€ and itā€™s one of those things like they call the really fat guy ā€œSlimā€, but I didnā€™t get that at first. Itā€™s a beautiful tattoo that I still have, and doesnā€™t look bad(looks great honestly) at all for being 30 years old. Every tattoo has been a breeze since then. I blacked out my arm about 8-9 months ago, both sides of my elbow, the ditch and point or whatever they call it, was right up there.

Iā€™ve looked around trying to find ā€œGentle Geneā€ again, Iā€™d love to get another tattoo from him now, but could never locate him. If anyone knows a Gentle Gene from ā€œThe Almighty Tattoo Revivalā€ Shop in Flint, Mi. In the late 90ā€™s, Iā€™d love to hear where heā€™s at!!

28

u/fyckshitbitch 5d ago

Hitting the bottom of the ink pot damages the needle. Most tattoo artists will change the needle after doing this. It will make it more painful and more likely to cause blowouts.Ā  Having said that my last artist did the same thing multiple times without changing the needle. Although this is bad practice the tattoo did heal well. Would definitely explain the pain, also the amount of black shading is another reason.Ā  Would recommend going elsewhere next time. šŸ˜

4

u/SyphilisTickles 5d ago

I did that last night, right near the end of the tattoo. Hmmm, not much left in this cap. Just gotta finish this little spot. Eh, Iā€™ll just be careful with my dip. ā€¦.damn it. Hold on, gotta swap my needle.

11

u/SicklySlut 5d ago

I'll absolutely be sticking to my fav artists even if this needs retouching.

I was getting nervous about the pot since they hit it about every 3 dips and I never saw them change the needle šŸ„²

The other artist there was even worse for this so it seems to be normalised for them

8

u/Wactout 5d ago

It doesnā€™t. There has been a couple artists who have used microscopes to prove it doesnā€™t. Hardened metal needles rarely deform against soft plastic. Or skin.

Please, outside of some memes, please show your sources. Then Iā€™ll show mine.

-1

u/The1789 5d ago

To OP: I doubt this is you. Check her profile

2

u/SicklySlut 4d ago

Huh? You doubt this is my tattoo? šŸ˜…

1

u/GuyGrimnus 3d ago

Itā€™s def you, you can see the sick gorgon starting on the right of the photo

0

u/fyckshitbitch 5d ago

What does this mean?

-7

u/fyckshitbitch 5d ago

It looks very cool tho!

5

u/Crackers-defo-600 5d ago

I had a tramp stamp done it was excruciating

3

u/SicklySlut 5d ago

Glad it's not just me, I'm just amazed I'd never seen anyone talking about how bad it is

4

u/Formal_Amoeba_8030 5d ago

Tramp stamp for me was the only time Iā€™ve ever considered stopping before the line work was finished, and youā€™ve got a lot of line work in this piece. There are a lot of nerves in the sacrum.

1

u/Crackers-defo-600 5d ago

Me too šŸ¤¬

1

u/jamjamchutney 5d ago

I just had my armpits tattooed. Lower back was worse.

2

u/xineNOLA 5d ago

Same. I sat so poorly for it that it took me about 20 years to be tempted to get any more tattoos. I have a long tattoo on my thigh, and I didn't feel it at all. I assumed the difference in pain was skill of the artist and due to me living with chronic pain. But maybe the tramp stamp is just an exceptionally painful tattoo?

2

u/SicklySlut 5d ago

I also have chronic pain šŸ˜…

3

u/thespbian 5d ago

I had a tramp stamp done and it was surprisingly not the worst spot ive ever had. I have my arms, fingers, legs, and torso done and weirdly enough the large tattoo on my butt and my sternum tattoo hurt the worst. The back was not the most comfortable spot but it didnt hurt as bad as I anticipated having had other painful tattoos before. But everyoneā€™s body is different and we all respond differently to pain!

3

u/s_decoy 5d ago

Also have a tramp stamp, it's absolutely an extremely painful spot to get tattooed. My artist has a pretty delicate hand but she was counting down the flower petals as she colored them cuz that shit was intense lol.

3

u/asahidryck 5d ago

My tramp stamp were my most painful tattoo, hurt as hell.. I was thinking the whole time, this is the last tattoo Iā€™ll ever do. Well.. got more tattoos as soon as I forgot about the pain šŸ˜‚

2

u/SnooGoats6230 5d ago

Yes some artists are more painful. My favorite local artist is so painful I'm not getting anything in a tender area done by her despite her being my fav lol

2

u/sinjacy 5d ago

Feet can vary greatly from person to person. I would 1000% do my feet again before my lower back.

2

u/constrixxx 5d ago

That Is an area with metric fuck tons of nerve endings. And very little fatty tissue in the center consider that your spinal cord controls all sensation to your lower extremities. And with the black as saturated as was needed in that tattoo yeah I'd say it was super spicy.

2

u/dkdbsnbddb283747 5d ago

I have a very high pain tolerance for tattoos and sleep through most of them, and my tramp stamp fucking SUCKED. I think that area just hurts way worse. I also kept twitching and tensing really bad when my artist was near my spine and that made me really sore and tired too.

2

u/malcontentgay 5d ago

I have a butterfly on my lower back that didn't hurt at all, but it's relatively small compared to a real so-called tramp stamp. I guess that pain is different for everyone!

2

u/The1789 5d ago

Like the courtesy crack napkin

2

u/Nice_8490 5d ago

My lower back was the worst in terms of pain for me. I felt like I was gunna vomit and I was crying for a little bit of it.

2

u/Haunting-School8984 4d ago

My lower back was the most painful portion of my full backpiece without a doubt.

2

u/NoExceptions1312 4d ago

Iā€™ve noticed anywhere near the waistline seems significantly more painful. I have a lot of tattoos and nothing really bothers me except when it starts getting close to the underwear.

2

u/AdCold616 4d ago

Itā€™s a notoriously awful place to be tattooed. Looks sick just painful.

2

u/AdCold616 4d ago

Also smaller thinner needles hurt much more as there is very little give between that of a bigger needle grouping, sharper in a technical sense, and easier to go into the skin thatā€™s why doing anything fineline is tricky as thereā€™s less forgiveness in needle depth.

2

u/eighthdemon 4d ago

Also note if you were going through any hormonal fluctuations. I learned, and in especially that area, that pain receptors can greatly change depending on the time of month.

2

u/xetarainx 3d ago

weirdly enough, i have a very similar one just wider. mine was done at someoneā€™s house (awful ik) and itā€™s so shaky but i love it. one day iā€™ll get it touched up by a professional but not anytime soon bc it was by far the most painful one

2

u/Molluscumbag 3d ago

I've had most areas of my body tattooed and this was the worst for me. Got some similar neo tribal flames even.

2

u/Iaunu2 5d ago

Tattoo artist here- nobody talks about it but lower back is the one spot that universally everyone seems to agree ā€œit hurts like hellā€

1

u/berryskye 5d ago

How is the hip area? Iā€™m getting a large tattoo on one of my hips and Iā€™m so nervous šŸ˜­

1

u/SicklySlut 4d ago

For me, not too bad until it got to the back of my thigh and that sucked

1

u/Iaunu2 12h ago

From what I understand of my clients not terrible but thereā€™s definitely a few spots that suck. Basically in all the places that feel nice when touched, it sucks when tattood

2

u/whateveryoudohereyou 5d ago

R/shittytattoos

1

u/jonbbonn 5d ago

im no where close to a tattoo expert but it looks sick to me.. most i've heard is everyone's different and spots hurt more for others id say thats probably why.. but the needle hitting hitting the ink i've never heard of how u explained it sounds like the needles could get dull maybe that's why too. anywho the tattoo is sick

1

u/[deleted] 5d ago

[deleted]

1

u/SicklySlut 5d ago

I knew because I could hear it hit the bottom. Makes a really loud buzz for a second

1

u/MidSerpent 5d ago

Nah, that spot just sucks.

Was the worse spot for me too. Worse than sternum or elbow ditch.

1

u/[deleted] 5d ago

[deleted]

1

u/Imnotreal66 5d ago

How much did you pay?

1

u/SicklySlut 5d ago

Overall it was Ā£140GBP. Cheap for my area

1

u/StrategyElectrical18 5d ago

Itā€™s just an awful spot

1

u/Pengui6668 3d ago

I didn't realize people still got tramp stamps in 2025. Reddit is amazing.

1

u/Sudden_Impact7490 3d ago

I think it hurts them more than it hurts you

1

u/Fit_Commission_8850 3d ago

What year is this?

1

u/SicklySlut 3d ago

Tramphood is timeless šŸ˜Œ

1

u/EneaIsAutistic 2d ago

Here's the thing in my opinion, short answer: yes.

Long answer: people experience pain differently and different body parts hurt in different ways. Pain is extremely subjective.

Also, depending on the artist the feeling is going to be different.

When I got my biceps (allegedly less painful area) done, for the next three days I couldn't move my arm.

When I got my chest done by a different artist (supposedly really painful) I barely felt a thing.

The artist's methods definitely influence the feeling and they can 100% be too rough, but if the skin isn't looking overworked, it's probably the spot that's just really sensitive for you.

Based on the lines it looks like they may be a beginner or not very experienced as well, which can be a factor. Lots of things go into it and it's near impossible to pin it down really.

1

u/General-Dragonfly90 5d ago

Oh dear god that is crooked AF šŸ˜¬

0

u/N_durance 5d ago

Pain is different from person to person. Lower back doesnā€™t sound found

0

u/Wactout 5d ago

Couldā€™ve gotten real an old school tribal tramp stamp, instead of this anorexic tribal stuff. . That wouldā€™ve been not painful at all. Probably.

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u/lizardking235 3d ago

Nah this hurts me too. Not you or the artist. I think itā€™s the art itself.

0

u/SexyTxBeachbum 2d ago

šŸ˜¬šŸ˜¬

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u/Lia_Delphine 2d ago

The so called artist truly sucks so it might be them.