Tattoo Therapy

Tattoo Therapy

Tattoo Therapy, We hear this phrase a lot at the tattoo shop.

People say they come in and get tattooed not only to get some cool new body art, but also to ….

Relax.

Now on the surface this may sound strange. Are these people masochists? Are they crazy? Why would a person consider tiny tattoo needles puncturing their skin thousands of times relaxing?

Well, with tattoos as with many thing there is more than meets the eye ….

The modern world is loud, there are distractions everywhere.  We never have the time focus. Even when we are relaxing we are distracted.

We look at social media on our phones while we watch tv, then a messages notification pops up and we check it and reply, then while we are replying we get an Instagram notification,  we check it to see who liked your most recent post. Next your phone rings, you answer, after hanging up you notice a new email icon and check that. After that you put your phone away and look at the show you were “watching” and realize you don’t even know what is going on. Then you pull out your phone again and wonder why you even opened it in the first place. Then a new notification to breaks your focus and the cycle begins again, again, and again…

Wow… that was relaxing wasn’t it?

And taking yourself away from all these distractions is almost worse. We have withdrawals from not knowing, we get fomo, then we think about the past, the future, anything but the present , our minds are in a constant state of flux and we become even more anxious than when we are distracted.  Because now there is an unknown element that we must deal with… boredom.

And this is how we live our lives. Constantly in a state of over stimulation, never able to calm our minds. Never able to be human and absorb our environment, never able to be one with ourselves.

Enter Tattoo Therapy.

Now, I understand that getting a tattoo to relax can sound quite counterintuitive, but don’t be so quick to judge. Let’s go over the process of getting tattooed.

First you get that nervous excitement as you walk through the doors, sending a flood of endorphins and adrenaline through your body. You think to yourself,  “What should I get?”, “ Is it going to hurt?”, “ Who am I going to show first?”

Next, you have a nice highly focused conversation with your tattoo artist about what you are going to get tattooed and the reasons why. You take the time to focus and go over every detail. You are not distracted or timid, you are in the moment, thinking clearly, and able to make a meaningful decision.

Then, you sit down in the chair and get as comfortable as possible as you hear the tattoo machine warming up, you look at the artist as they dip the needles in the ink and watch then go in and out at lightning speed. You hear your artist say, “Are you ready?”

Then boom…

It happens.

The hot needles hit your skin for the first time. It hurts, but not too bad. You definitely notice it, but you can handle it.

In fact, strangely enough, it is actually kind of nice.

You realize for the first time, in a very long time, all the noise and distractions are gone.

Not only that, but all your fears about the future and your regrets about the past are gone too.

For the first time in a long time you have entered the rare air of being present . Really being there, in the moment.

You may doze off while in this state of calm. Going in and out in a dreamlike state, truly letting your mind wonder.

You may want to chat a bit, this state allows you think clearly and easily articulate your thoughts, enabling you to how you were designed to, like a normal human.

Maybe in this focused state you’ll have an epiphany, or maybe you will be able to sort something out.

The possibilities are endless.

But wait…

How did this happen?

How did the tearing of your flesh from a tattoo induce such a feeling of enlightenment?

The answer is a bit complicated,  but here is the gist of it.

The excitement loads your body and mind with endorphins( the minor pain also contributes to this). The mild pain then serves an even more important role (other than an awesome tattoo). The pain forces you to focus on it. This constant unbreakable focus is just what we need in this distraction filled world. Even though the pain is mild, it is there, and it blocks out all those other pesky thoughts and distractions that plague our everyday modern lives.

The pain is freedom.

Your mind simply does not have the bandwidth to concentrate on the pain and all those other menial things at once. It needs to choose one to focus on and it make the primal choice, to focus on the immediate “treat”the pain.

The pain isn’t blinding,  its is just the right amount to truly focus yourself. To truly clear you mind.

This focus enables your mind to enter a state of flow. Flow is a state that is hard to find, and when your mind enters it you think more clearly and feel more clearly and you feel truly connected to the world.

You can find this state flow through various practices, some take years to master.

Or, you can set an appointment today, get an amazing tattoo, get into the flow state, and get in to our extra comfy chairs for some Tattoo Therapy.

Book online or Call 562-446-3656, See you Soon!