G & S INK MK
Does it hurt?
I am often asked how much getting tattoos hurts, or alternately describing the pain of a certain tattoo and have someone say that tattoos don’t hurt. If you think tattoos don’t hurt then you simply haven’t been tattooed on a dicey area yet. Some areas of the body are more painful then others and while your buddy might say that his superman tattoo on his bicep didn’t hurt, that same tattoo on his knee would have been almost unbearable.
I came across this handy tattoo pain chart yesterday and I must say it’s very accurate when I compare it with my own personal tattoo experience.
My Own Experience
I’m rather tattooed and have been tattooed on quite a few places extensively. Here’s a list of where I’ve been tattooed and how much I think it hurt.
Outer Arm - This is one of the least painful places to get a tattoo. Expect to feel some burning but it’s nothing you can’t grin and bear. If you can’t handle a tattoo on you’re outer arm, don’t try to get a tattoo somewhere else as it will surely be more painful.
Inner Arm – The inner arm isn’t the most pleasant area to have tattooed and it does hurt considerably more then the outer arm. I would say it burns considerably. If you are just going around the arm it seems to hurt much more then if you are getting the inner arm tattooed exclusively for a few hours.
Ribs – I’ve heard horror stories of the pain of rib tattoos but in my experience, it’s not so bad. Just like any dicey tattoo the longer you sit the more tolerant you are to the pain. Getting your ribs tattooed burns and occasionally you will hit a nerve, sending chills throughout your body, but is not unbearable.
Abdomen – Getting my abdomen tattooed was one of the most excruciating tattoo experiences I’ve endured. I have a large piece across my entire right love handle and I must say, It hurt like hell. For a time during the outlining process I had to be physically held down to the table by one person while my tattooist worked on the tattoo.
Upper Back – It’s been so long since I had my back tattooed I barely remember it. My very first tattoo was on my upper back. From what I can remember it wasn’t too bad. It certainly burned and when a nerve was hit all kinds of things would tingle from my arm to my legs.
Outer Thigh – The outer thigh is not a painful place to get tattooed. Many areas of my thigh didn’t hurt at all, although the closer to my ass cheeks we got the more it hurt. Second to the outer arm, this is least painful place I have been tattooed.
Inner Thigh – The inner thigh, much like the inner arm, hurts more then the outer thigh. The skin is more tender therefore it burns considerable more. Far from unbearable, but certainly not a comfortable spot to be tattooed.
Knee – I have only been tattooed as close as an inch to my knee. I can say that the closer the tattoo got to the kneecap the more it hurt. Eventually my tattooist was physically holding me down as the tattoo further approached the knee. This is one of the most painful areas I have ever been tattooed.ng, but there were a lot of foul words said. It was hell. I don’t recommend the top of the foot unless you’ve got pudgy feet.
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For me, my middle back hurt so much i almost passed out, especially toward the edge. I barely felt the one on my hip, but the one below that on my outer thigh burned the closer to got to the front of my thigh and groin area. The top of my foot did not hurt nearly as much as I thought, but the ankle was quite painful. As was my shin.
Basically, if the skin is sensitive, it’s gonna hurt. -
i just got my first tatts on my chest two outlined stars they probably tooke an hour not very big but my bf makes fun of me for making facesbecause it was a lil painful wait tell he gets his first tat tho hes never had one and hes wanting a superman symbol to cover his whole chest.we will see whos the cry baby.bet its him;)
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i got my first tattoo on my lower back… despite hearing horror stories about that area… and aside from being dehydrated (they made me drink a lot of water while i was getting done), i didn’t feel anything.
and my friends decided to get a tat on their shoulders, one said hurt like hell (scared of needles, so idk y they got it in the first place), the other said he winced and bared it… -
My wrists, collarbone, and sternum were the worst (so far). May I use this chart on my site if I credit/link you?
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i have 5 tattoos the one on my shin was hellish but it was my first the other 2 are on my back they were easy peasy and the other two are on my wrists, no pain at all im booked in for one this friday for a skull on my finger, i know people say its gonna hurt but i dont agree, if you want it youll stand the pain. i heard the finger is needing to get retouched but i dont agree with that either. its like seeing a film i never listen to anyone else i go see it myself if its crap then fair enough but what some hate i like, same with tattoos what they find hurts i might find ok.
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I was thinking of a tattoo on the upper part of my back that stretched shoulder to shoulder
How will the pain feel
P.S. I have been in many experiences with pain like broken bones and split heads, will a tatto be a breeze?
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i have two tattoos and am about to sit for a rib cage mural. i have words on my left rib cage and a big circle on my hip. both took about the same amount of time but the rib cage was almost relaxing. my hip was near impossible to sit still for. i didn’t want to be a whiny bitch but it felt like my skin was ripping off of my body. we’ll see if my opinion changes after my 10″ x 7″ rib mural.
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ELBOW…. you feel it in you BRAIN. the worst yet by far.
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i have my neck ribs forarm and inner fingers and my knuckles my ribs hurt pretty bad but part of it tickled my forarm wasnt shit neither was my knuckles and the neck piece wasnt that bad and my innner finger F*%$in Sh!t
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I have tattoos on both arms, upper and lower legs 5 on my back, on both feet, wrist, both hands, wedding finger and breast and they ahve all been very different. i also found that if you are not hundred percent yourself then they tend to hurt more but the ones on the calf muscles hurt but not as bad as the recovery, i could hardly walk, the best place was my shoulders, the way i look at it is i have had 2 kids and nothing hurts like that.
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ive got some extensive tattoo work. mainly to my ribs and shins/knee cap.
id say the knee cap and ribs have been the worst by far. ive only got the outline done on my kneecap but i must say ive prolly got another 4 hours of coloring to do to it. now im re-designing the tattoo to be complete in 2 hours. haha it was that bad. as for my ribs it hurt like hell. no if ands or buts about it. if you try and think about how ticklish you are in an area can kinda gauge the pain level you are going to experiance.
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if u have to ask how bad it’ll hurt, u dont want it bad enough. every persons gonna have different pain tolerances. it also depends on the artist and his machine set up. ive got about 40 hrs worth of tats, most being the kneecap and across the shin because of the bone underneath
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I will put it like this. I have logged about 150 hours of chair time and BY FAR the worst was the top of my foot.. eight hours of pure agony. I applaud all the ladies that I see with foot tattoos. I have full sleeves on both arms, a few on my legs, one inside my lip, a few ribs, my chest, back and two on my penis (yes two). No tattoo is really friendly, but they are bearable if you really want it.
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I have a measly 10 tatoos, all on my arms but I have to say the inside of my arm -the top- hurt the most!
But like someone said before, everyone has a different pain threshold.
I can’t handle a headache but I can quite happily sit there to get a tattoo, knowing the end result is worth it :]
For anyone getting a first tattoo I’d say the top of your arm is least painful, but like they say
-No pain, no gain ;] -
ya my dad is givven me a tattoo after christmas he has his own shop and im only 15 but ill be 16 may 7th Im thinking of my lowerback or my shoulderblade I have been in alot of fights so im sure i can take the pain
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my first tattoo was on my wrist. fairly large in size (horizontally covers the entire patch of skin) and actually totally bearable. it felt like someone was slitting my wrist repeatedly, but if you’re used to dealing with paper cuts, shouldn’t be too big of a deal.
i’ve also gotten lower to mid back, inner forearm, bicep, elbows, and upper back, which were all bearable. the upper back (right between my shoulder blades) hurt the most and actually stil hasn’t completely healed to this day. it’s still raised. the lower to mid back made me squirm and tear up. forearm and bicep were a piece of pie. the elbows weren’t too bad. i remember an unusual amount of bleeding, they blurred, and it took them a long time to heal.
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I got my First Tat On my Lower Back, (3 large Hibiscus flowers) and I have to say it hurt like hell! I have good pain threshold but the 2 hours it took to complete were not very fun. I am 100 lbs with NO fat on my body, so every time that needle hit my back it felt like it was going straight through my spin. But I do love my Tattoo and it was 100% worth the pain :)
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Got my first one today! It goes almost all the way aroud my ringer finger! Im not gonna lie, it hurt pretty bad! I was worth it tho!!
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I have had behind my ear, back of my neck, inside of my lower lip, bicep part of my arm, inside wrist, ass, 1 on each calf, and 1 on each foot. By far the worst pain was with my lip but that didn’t last very long and the healing time was great. The top of each of my feet hurt second to my lip. The longest I have sat for was 6 hours but that was when the tattoo was finished. But I have to agree with some others on this one, if you want it, really want it, than it is worth any amount of pain. Oh and P.S. I am a girl!!!
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i got a large tattoo on my back and whilst it hurt i was not prepared for the excruating pain round my upper kidney areas, i felt like fainting it was so bad, im not finished yet and am a little apprehensive about going back, but i will cause its very addictive.
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I have had about 17 tattoos in completing my full sleeve. The wrist (especially when getting retouched) was the only one that made me squirm.
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tats dont hurt
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I have six tattoos, my upper right shoulder blade, lip, right wrist, back of my neck, and my side (my breast down to my hip bone). I would have to say, the ribs and my hip had to hurt the most, and it didn’t help that I’m ticklish. I could not lay still for the two hours it took. My lip and wrist hurt the least, followed by my upper right back and then the back of my neck. I’m also 5’1, 115 pounds with barely any fat.
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i have like 8 tattooz, a chest piece, wrist, shoulder, neck, behind ear, thigh & lower stomach piece & im getting my side done right now… i have to say, OUCH
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I have 20 tattoos and as a tattooist i get asked almost everyday which part of the body hurts the most, in my experience the elbow is easy, ribs are niggly, arms and legs are generally the safest bets but my worst place was my knee cap, which was made worse because i was the one who inked it.
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well I have 4 tattoos right now in the process of getting my inner ankle and my chest area done I have to say my inner ankle hurts like a bitch and my chest towards my armpits hurt like a bitch too but the inner chest between my breast is easy going so was my neck and shoulder ubtill the shoulder piece got to the spine area then damn I was in tears but it was worth I’m glad my man doe tattooing cause I wouldn’t want anyone else to see me in tears over a few million pricks of the skin
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I have 3 tattoos. Before I got my calf tattoo, people were going on about how painful it was- it was actually nothing at all. Perfectly fine. Although the touch up 6 weeks later is a different story…
Booked in for a another tattoo, and considering my shin. Want to gradually merge the two pieces (calf+shin) together so it will be like one tattoo. But I can sense that, because the bone is so close to the skin that it’s going to hurt like hell…er, bring it on? #slightlyworried
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I am 19 n have 3 tats now on mu neck back and foot. Neck was a walk n the park back not to bad but i have a rosery all around my foot and ankle that was very hard to sit through. But im goin n 2 days to get a rib tat pretty decent size im 5-7 125 pounds. I hear it hurts but im just wondering is it better or worse than foot tat
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Interesting Answers, Im booked in for my first in a week, having an upper arm Tat down towards the elbow in Black n Grey 3 sittings 2hrs each, a little apprehensive but greatfull 4 the comments posted. I have been told to take a couple of Ibuprofen and paracetamol before the work starts……Worth a try i suppose ;-)
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I got my first tattoo about 3 months ago and it was absoloute hell. it’s a big tribal peice on the top half of my back, shoulder to shoulder. it took 5 hours altogether, definatley the most painful experience i’ve ever had. it might be a while before i pluck up the courage to go back and get another!
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Just got my first tattoo last night – Two actually! I got pairing hip tattoos on the front of my lower pelvic area. About 4″ x 2″ each.
Overall, it barely hurt at all. Felt similar to when you feel a hang-nail drag across your skin – not painful, just feels like a scratch. But there were definitely a few spots that made me grit my teeth. Maybe because there were more nerve endings in one spot vs another? Not sure.
But like I said, overall, it barely hurt.
I was pretty nervous when I first got to the studio. I read horror stories and was prepared for the worst. But as soon as I felt that needle for the first time, I was like “oh… that’s it? That’s not bad at all.”
Even though there were definitely some painful parts, it only lasted for a brief moment. Would I get a tattoo again – HELL YA!!! :-)
Hope my experience helps you decide on a hip tattoo or not. Don’t let anyone scare ya… it’s truly not that bad.
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I have a lower back tattoo that also goes up the full length of my spine. I have shoulder blade tattoo, wrist, whole calf, stomach, half sleeve on one arm and large tattoo on the underneath of the other arm going from armpit to elbow, foot tattoo from big toe to above ankle, a full chest piece and the whole of the back of my neck too :). so far the most painful would be my foot, it took two and a half hours and was pure agony!!! I am now looking at having both knees done and finishing my arm into a full sleeve. I am however a little worried about the pain of the knee tattoos :S.
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most of my tats are on my arms/shoulders and both calves (back), the worst was the front of my leg, particularly the top of the piece which was very close to the knee. i could feel my bone vibrating. only tattoo ive ever shouted obscenities at the artist (in this case my gf–whoops!). eventually i bit down on my shirt so i would shutup. she did a great job though and it was worth the pain. the back of the leg/calf is nothing compared to the front where the bone is! and girls be careful about when you get inked.. around the time of the month seems to hurt quite a bit more for some.
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ive got two tattoos both on my back.
my first one was my lower back (aka the tramp stamp) yes it hurt like hell, when he hit the spine, but when he hit the outside, “fattier area” it actually tickled,and didnt hurt one bit. the outline, hurt a little, but the color was easy..
my second one was my upper back, which has just been completed.. it took 4 applications to finally get it done, it stretches from the middle of both shoulders down to the middle part of my upper back.. the outline, it hurt alot, yes i was crying, especially when he hit my spine… yes that hurts like a MOTHER! the coloring, was not bad at all… i can describe the feeling as like a cat kneading.. “kitty claws” its not too bad, it burnsa little but nothing too intense.. the healing. isnt the most confortable, especially consideing the location, but its not unbearable.. all in all it was a great experience.. im already warming up for my next few tattoos. -
I am going to have my 1st tattoo tomorrow of my baby’s name on the side of my hand. Does any body know what it feels like n does it hurt.
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I have 11 tattoos. The worst, of which, was my rib piece. A 13″ tree going up my side. The pain was so excruciating, that I ended up seizing in the chair. As much as I would love to finish the piece, I’m too chicken shit to go back.
I’m getting my inner Bicep done tomorrow, a 7″x5″ piece, and I’ve heard all different responses about the pain, but, I don’t think it will be even half as bad as the ribs. -
For me, the worst place was definitely the ribs. I have 6 tattoos (getting a 7th today on my inner forearm). Back of the neck was definitely the least painful – it felt like I was being tickled. Hardly felt a thing. Wrist wasn’t at all painful either – bit of a prickling but nothing even close to burning. Upper back was mostly a pain-free experience except where contact was made with shoulderblade or spine. My back tattoo wraps around and down, and so goes over the ribs and that was the part that was almost unbearable on outlining (filling-in was fine). Both hips tattooed – left didn’t hurt, but right (in exactly the same place) hurt like hell. Also a tattoo on upper chest between breast and collarbone which, until I had my rib done, took the crown for most painful.
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most of my upper arm and inside, not bad. forearm, not bad. my whole calf, not bad at all. shins, kinda painful but still not bad. side of leg, not bad. Tops of both feet and around to under the ankles, hurt real bad, couldnt even focus on photos in a magazine…. i think the best way to describe a tattoo is haveing a sumburn scratched with a pencil….
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I have six tattoos that I’ve gotten over the past two months. My first was on my thigh, and that stung, but wasn’t too bad. The second one I got was behind my ear, and I thought that was gonna hurt a lot but it barely hurt at all…although the needle sounded a thousand times louder! I stupidly got my third and fourth tattoos on the same day…one was on my inner pointer finger and the other on my foot. Definatly the most painful tattoos I’ve ever had!! The finger hurt really bad, but was over with in ten minutes. My foot however…it felt like it took hours. I have a high pain tolerance, but I was crying like a little bitch during it and my leg wouldn’t stop twitching and I made my boyfriends hand bleed from gripping him so tight, lol. What sucks is I have to get my foot touched up and I am sooo not looking foreward to it! I got my fifth and sixth tattoos done on the same day too in one sitting, I got a piece done on both my sides. For the most part they tickeled, but by the time we reached the three hour mark, I was getting really sore and it was starting to hurt more. But they didn’t hurt as much as I thought they would…even on my ribs and down to the tender area around my hipbones, it wasn’t that bad. The foot is definatly the worst place to get tattooed!
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I now have two tats. One on my left calf, and I can’t remember much about it except that for the most part it was alright. Only painful near the bone to the front.
Just got home from a 3 hour session on my right foot and OMG. It goes from near the big toe, across the foot and along the ankle. I consider myself pretty tough. Needles don’t scare me.
But holding still through that tattoo was the hardest thing ever. I swear I nearly kicked the artist a time or two! Overall, no tears or screaming, but I did break into a sweat for the first hour and spent most of the time focusing on breathing! Btw, I’m a heavyset girl. Despite that you definitely feel when it hits the bone. (which is most of what the foot is). It felt like he was DIGGING into the bone at times with a sharp knife, and that was the worst. I’ll never get another foot tat, but I do love it! Well worth it! -
ive got 38 tattoos the worst one of all was my calf ive got a complete chest piece armpit and inner arm and the back of my leg burned the entire time i almost gave up half way through i mean if it tells you anything i went from a 14g earring to a 2g in 15 minutes i can take pain and that was unbearable but i love tattoos other than that they are a very good stress reliever and a very good way to express yourself never let anyone tell u there wrong cuz there not!!! GET TATTED!!!
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I added to a prior tattoo yesterday. It starts at the bottom of my scapula and runs around the top of my rib cage / under arm to the side of my breast. The point where my traps and delts attach to the scapula has nerve endings that set my shoulder socket on fire. The armpit area was hellacious! I thought the ribs hurt until I hit the scapula and armpit. I was praying for more rib area by the end of it. My feet were sweating. I was cursing. And I found a lot of new yoga poses through involuntary body contortions. All in all – it was a good time and I’ll probably go back for more color in a year or so…
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I have two tattoo’s one on my upper arm, tribal.. not sore at all.
Got another one on my chest just below the collar bone and slightly left of center. two days ago, Supernatural tv series protection one Pentegram with sun around it.. Feck that burned like hell, took over an hour to do.. Healing nicely and was well worth the pain though, am so happy with it. -
I just got my first tattoo ever, that goes from my hip to my ribs! worst pain ever was the ribs! the ribs sucked, and I got some color so it feltlike a needle was being drug around a sunburn…fack
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I got my first tattoo about 3 months ago on the top of my foot. I don’t have anything to compare it to but it definitely hurt a lot. Since it was my first one the shock of it hurt more than anything, it’s a pain you can’t compare to anything else. The pain while getting it is so worth the end result.
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Just got my first tattoo on my foot and OMG it hurt. It hurt bad. Large tattoo covering most of the foot, from ankle to toes.
Looks amazing, but it was an excruciating 3 1/2 hours. Could only just stomach it and shook all over for the last half hour. Nearly kicked the tattooist too.
Worth it though! Would do it again… but maybe not the foot! :)
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i’ve had 6 root canals, reconstructive surgery k9 to k9, 12 abcessed teeth and kidney stones. you are all a bunch of pussies as far as im concerned ;)
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i ended up getting a tattoo on my side and part of my waist.. it hurt so bad.. im looking to get more done to it.. also wanting to get it done on the other side too..