Have you covered a scar with a tattoo?

Won’t the scar fade with time? And wouldn’t memorializing it with a tattoo draw your attention—and others’—to the spot forever, and bring endless questions?

Why not wait a while and then decide? You could do it later on, but you can’t undo it.

I’m 50. My scars don’t fade. :(

I have friends who have covered scars with tattoos, and they have all found it empowering. Yes, the tattoo can sometimes remind them of the experience that gave them the scar. But they say that it’s more likely to remind them of the feeling they got from reasserting control over their body and turning the scar into something of their choice. There’s no guarantee that you would have the same experience, of course, but it does help a lot of people.

As for the pain, that’s not something I’ve really heard anyone talk about. I texted a few people, and only two got back to me. One said the pain was about the same as any of her other tattoos (maybe slightly more painful), while the other said it was a lot more painful for him. Some quick research suggests that the size of the scar matters, which makes sense because the one who said it was more painful than normal had a big patch of scar tissue on his arm (whereas the other had three lines of scar tissue from cutting herself).

Regardless, you want an experienced tattoo artist for something like this—preferably one who has tattooed over scars before. Not only will they be in a better position to talk about the pain issue, but they are more likely to have the skills required for tattooing scarred skin (which isn’t the same as tattooing normal skin).

It depends on the scar type and the age of the scar (you said recent). If the scar is very deep (major accident, surgery and the like) and very thick or ragged, you should wait until it “sets” (for lack of a better word). My friends who have done this say that it doesn’t really hurt more than getting a regular tattoo, but it does feel different. If you already have ink, you know what your pain index is. I am a baby when I get inked, but I haven’t tried anything over a scar.

And yes, as @SavoirFaire says, it can be very empowering to cover a bad memory with something you choose.

Great information! Thank you.

My daughter owns a body piercing shop, and she has multiple tattoos.
After my heart surgeries and gall bladder removal, she talked to me about my options regarding the many scars I ended up with, including tattooing.
I decided against them, since the scars are souvenir of my journey.

No
But I have a tattoo that got defaced by a scar

@filmfann I understand why you decided against. This is why I’m hesitant.

@TJFKAJ if you don’t mind I think many of us would like to hear your story.

Scarification would also be a possibility. A tattoo covers up, but you will still feel the scar and you don’t know how you will tolerate the color. If the scar is changed instead, you can also have a great pattern and the same empowering feeling of getting back control.
I have scars from mole removals, and that’s why I thought about scarification and tattoos a few years ago. And I personally don’t like tattoos and think the color isn’t good for my skin.

@sincere What sort of scar is it? Not necessarily the source, but is it deep or wide or a deep scrape? @skyrill brought up a good point, the color will likely not be consistent from scar tissue to unscarred skin.

@canidmajor One deep puncture, three lacerations and two scars from scabs from an infection at the site. They all fit inside an area equivalent to the palm of a hand.

@sincere Then color variation shouldn’t be an issue if each individual wound is fairly small.

Thanks again for the info.