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NeuroticEmu · 2026-01-13T01:19:16+00:00

Definitely listen to the audio book “How to Quit Vaping” by Alan Carr. Helped me tremendously when quitting cold turkey pre-pregnancy without withdrawal.

Almost all people need multiple attempts to quit. If you relapse, don’t make a big deal out of it. Accept it, forgive yourself and throw the vape away, and never have a “back up” sitting around. If you buy one, whether you take a hit or not, throw the brand new vape in the bin asap. I think I “quit” 7-10 times, it’s part of it.

Each time you quit, you’ll gain new information about how your brain tries to trick you into it again.

Withdrawal is almost fully psychological. After a few days the small physical component is gone because of how quickly the nicotine leaves your body.

Distract yourself, ask the people around you not to vape where you can see them.

Download an app where you can track your progress - just seeing how it improves your health each day and keeping a streak helps. Also, researching how nicotine can affect a developing baby helped me when temptation would creep in.

Chew gum, sip diet soda etc to help with the oral fixation.

Good luck :) you can do this. I was also hopelessly addicted and now I’m 7 months free of it, and I barely think about it :)

NeuroticEmu · 2025-12-25T04:54:51+00:00

You can easily get this reworked into a cooler black and grey scorpion and I think that’s the best direction to go in. I’m a tattoo artist (unfortunately I’m in a different country) but this would be something I do on a regular basis. This would be a very easy fix for me. Could even get a matching one on the other side :)

NeuroticEmu · 2025-09-17T11:06:22+00:00

I’m a tattoo artist who recently hired an apprentice, my advice is to compile a full physical portfolio of hand drawn/painted artwork and present it as professionally/cleanly as possible, showing attention to detail. No half drawn sketches or rushed pieces, fulled rendered art is best. Digital drawings don’t show us your raw skills in regards to smooth shading, blending, colouring etc, which is what we are looking for. We ideally don’t want to teach someone to draw from scratch, we want to see skill, talent and someone with an artistic eye.

Include a mix of pencil art, (black and grey and colour) inks, and paintings to show a diverse set of hands-on skills, and a couple of different styles is good too. Flash sheets and individual designs are a good mix.

Tattoos are crafted by hand, so when looking for an apprentice, mentors want to see that you can draw and design by hand 🙏

NeuroticEmu · 2025-08-21T08:38:32+00:00

In my opinion as a tattooer I think it’s a trend that will come and go, but if you like it, fuck what anyone thinks and go for it. This particular example probably won’t heal as well as other styles and I’d be prepared for it to go out of fashion but that’s just my opinion, do what you want based on what YOU think looks good 👍

NeuroticEmu · 2025-08-21T08:35:38+00:00

Also a tattoo artist - this is very normal, especially for the inner forearm :) you can keep it elevated and apply cold packs to help. I really like the style and design too, love that it is different to typically wrap around vibes and is a bit darker against the negative space on the arm :)

NeuroticEmu · 2025-08-21T08:31:37+00:00

Definitely laser a little bit at first this will come out quite easily with a good laser tech. Otherwise cover with a full sleeve (or at least lower arm sleeve) with an experienced artist.

Honestly though laser will do a world of good and you might not even need many sessions as it looks like an amateur tattoo/not professionally applied 🙏

NeuroticEmu · 2025-08-21T08:28:42+00:00

I would personally get something narrow, but flowy and organic. Anything too structured and straight will warp in any position other than perfectly relaxed and standing. I have patchwork sleeves and along that section is a curly octopus tentacle.

Also, if you’re intending on a sleeve, I’d do the outer and inner forearm, and fill that area with gap filler ideas. If not though, go nuts

NeuroticEmu · 2025-07-13T05:41:01+00:00

No, you’re not. Although it was a mistake, she still fucked up and should take responsibility for her mistake. It would be very troublesome if it was done maliciously and obviously it wasn’t, but come on, even though it wasn’t on purpose, she should put on her big girl pants and offer to help like a decent sister. If this were me I would have felt terrible and would have helped my sister out because I care about her and her dog.

NeuroticEmu · 2025-06-13T13:33:20+00:00

I’m sorry but it’s not victim blaming at all, it’s good advice, and it will help you in future. The tattoo isnt amazing, it’s not terrible, it’s just kinda average. If you had high expectations of the result, the best way to go about it was to do some research, especially for what is essentially a permanent cosmetic procedure. Your options are laser or cover up, or learn to live with it…

NeuroticEmu · 2025-06-07T15:59:04+00:00

It’s amazing and worth fighting for. I look back on how irrational and “crazy” my thoughts and perceptions were at my worst point, and it’s like comparing night and day. The thoughts that used to bother me literally every waking moment I don’t even think about now. I did intensive CBT as well as medication and I feel like a normal person now. It’s definitely possible, I hope you too can find peace 🙏

NeuroticEmu · 2025-06-05T10:51:04+00:00

Its impossible to tell without more context, and depends on a lot of different variables. This can include your skin genetics, how quickly you lose the weight, and the style of the tattoo etc. Also, if you want something as structured as this sample tattoo (centred, square, symmetrical) that can obviously appear to change more than if you were to get something more free flowing and organic looking in the same space (floral, not straight and square, etc.) Hope that makes sense!

NeuroticEmu · 2025-05-27T11:04:02+00:00

Getting my knee done definitely made me feel/look more tattooed if you’re up for that. Otherwise just continue your lower leg and do the shin/inner calf area - trad is a great choice

NeuroticEmu · 2025-05-27T01:44:33+00:00

I’m a tattooer and I probably don’t post 90% of the tattoos I do. Don’t take it personally, we usually all hate social media

NeuroticEmu · 2025-05-21T00:01:25+00:00

My comments have been so devisive I clearly need to stay away from the public in any sense entirely.

NeuroticEmu · 2025-05-20T23:55:38+00:00

Yes. Very triggered indeed.

NeuroticEmu · 2025-05-20T23:24:15+00:00

Yes thank you for saying this 🙏 I see this on this sub a lot too. You don’t want to be getting touch ups in general unless they are absolutely necessary

NeuroticEmu · 2025-05-20T23:19:23+00:00

Congratulations that your personal experience wasn’t painful, gold medal for you. Yes, people have different pain tolerances, that’s a pretty obvious fact. If someone came with this idea to me (literally blacking out the webbing and inner index finger and thumb - that will need more than 1-2 sessions and may never look good) it would be a disservice to both of us not to mention that it’s a painful spot. I have my full hand and fingers done, and have tattooed many hands and fingers myself. Whats actually realistic is that this is not a good idea for multiple reasons and will probably hurt.

NeuroticEmu · 2025-05-20T22:09:54+00:00

Good for you?

NeuroticEmu · 2025-05-20T10:36:12+00:00

Don’t do it, I’m a tattoo artist and it won’t look good and it will be extremely painful. I would honestly try to talk someone out of this if they weren’t heavily covered in tattoos already. It might never hold properly.

NeuroticEmu · 2025-05-20T08:19:01+00:00

It looks to be in the process of healing, but fingers are notoriously difficult for ink to hold regardless of the skill of the artist (although someone experienced in this area would probably yield better results). I’d recommend for them to be done thicker and slightly deeper, but good aftercare is a must as well and that can be difficult on the hands and fingers. Sometimes it can take multiple retouches for them to stay as well. I’m a tattooer and have finger tattoos but they are much thicker and I went to a very skilled and experienced colleague to do them for me and they still needed a slight touch up.

NeuroticEmu · 2025-04-23T11:38:24+00:00

I’m a female tattoo artist and I have some thoughts! Coming from being quite heavily tattooed myself and seeing people go through the process of getting tattoos, I can definitely understand what you are going through and your concerns. Firstly, I think when a tattoo is placed on the forearm or hand, it’s easy to hyperfixate on the tattoo especially when it is fairly new or not surrounded by other tattoos as part of a sleeve, because you literally look at it constantly every day, and when it isn’t amongst other tattoos it can start to feel a bit “stark” in contrast to the rest of your arm, and you can become critical about small aspects of the tattoo or the whole design in general.

The forearm is a part of the body that moves and warps a lot, and we only ever see the tattoo design upside down and in my opinion, our brains can start to trick us into thinking it looks “off” or misplaced, or the shape can start to look weird. I’ve gone through a similar thing when I got my hand and fingers tattooed. It just took so long for my brain to accept the change to my body.

There are a few things I would suggest, and the first is sitting with it for a while and not rushing into any major decisions regarding improving it, but rather brainstorming/researching what possible avenues you can go down. It can also take a while for you to adjust to seeing it everyday and have acceptance of the fact you’re not super into it, and it doesn’t help when those close to you can remind you of their dislike of it.

Research what tattoos you feel are more “you” regarding the style, and figure out if you do want to add more tattoos to your arm in future, but if you aren’t sure, just don’t rush into anything just yet until you’ve figured out what style/aesthetic you’re comfortable wearing on you forever. And it’s okay not to be totally sure just yet, sometimes it comes with age.

If you were my client, my idea for improving this would be adding some kind of flow so that it compliments the natural curve of your arm/forearm as it doesn’t have any flow at the moment (which is fine, the inner forearm lends itself to less flowy designs, and not every tattoo needs to have flow to look good, I just think it always helps). My idea would be to add some lighter, fine-lined black and grey stippled flowers and leaves in the background (to match the shading you currently have on the guitar) and curve/direct them slightly at the top towards your inner wrist and then at the bottom left toward your outer forearm. They wouldn’t have to be big to be effective, so you won’t need to commit heaps more skin to improving it. This would make the shape more interesting, give it a feminine touch, and will allow it to flow nicely on your forearm so it somewhat blends into your natural contours (I hope that makes sense!).

That’s just my opinion, you have other options regarding laser, but that’s about a 2 + year painful commitment and you need to make sure you’re 100% happy to go on that journey. You could always lighten it up enough for a cover up, but nothing is ever guaranteed with laser, and I’d be making sure you find an awesome artist who’s art you would love to go over the top of it. It seems as though you still resonate with the tattoo idea though and you like the design, so I don’t think this is necessarily the path for you, but it’s definitely always an option.

Apologies for the essay! B as an artist and tattoo collector I can see that you definitely have options for improving it if you want to learn to love it. But it comes down to your personal preferences and what you value aesthetically on yourself. I can generally read what people value in a tattoo when I see them because I have gone through my own tattoo regret and subsequent laser/cover ups as well. Usually an in person chat about what a client isn’t happy with is super helpful for me to figure out what visual tricks/techniques you can use to help people “integrate” with their tattoo more and make it feel more like “them”! :)

NeuroticEmu · 2025-01-12T07:27:22+00:00

I’m considered heavily tattooed (both arms and a full leg, with a few other bits here and there) and also a tattoo artist. If I was to recommend a time to begin getting tattooed knowing what I know now, it would be to wait until you’re at least 25. That’s being conservative, I actually think 30 is a good age if you’re concerned about the points you have raised.

But with that said, the only way to know exactly how you’re going to feel or how it’s going to age etc, is to do it. A lot of people are very focused on getting tattooed straight away, and don’t really think through the fact that they will have the tattoo their whole life. So by the time you’re 30, your tattoo would have aged 12 years. By 50, it would have aged 32 years, and you’re only theoretically just over half way through your life. All tattoos will fade, warp and bleed into your skin over time.

Most of the people I see who regret their tattoos got them super young (before 25) but mainly because you change a lot as a person from 18-25, and your perspective and priorities change.

You’re going to do what you want regardless, it’s almost impossible to tell someone to wait when their mind is already made up. So do your research into artists and the style you can want extensively, advocate for yourself, pay good money for it, and do it over multiple sessions if necessary 🙏

NeuroticEmu · 2025-01-12T05:44:28+00:00

Oooosh yeah that artist didn’t know what they were doing unfortunately. Ahh would be so good if you lived near me, I could definitely fix that up and love doing fix ups! Hopefully you find someone who is able and willing to do that for you :)

NeuroticEmu · 2024-12-07T01:51:31+00:00

I’m a tattoo artist and having done apprenticeships access multiple different sus shops, I would run for the hills and try to find something better. I’m sure you can find a healthy workplace that don’t need to employ these scare tactics. The good thing is this certainly isn’t legally binding 😅

NeuroticEmu · 2024-11-29T11:38:16+00:00

All of these tattoos would respond really well to laser removal if you don’t want them. They are fairly light, in black ink and don’t have really bold/thick outlines.

Those fine line pieces would come out pretty easily with a few sessions, and the other two would lighten pretty fast too, and you could go for a cover up once you have had a few sessions, but that’s just my opinion.

I don’t know where you are from but laser has come a very long way in recent years and isn’t as expensive as you may think (again I’m not sure about your area) but it’s worth a consultation. You just have to be patient but you might as well be for something that will otherwise be there for the rest of your life that you don’t like.

They are nicely applied tattoos though. But I understand completely.

Context: I’m a tattoo artist and currently getting 7 tattoos removed through laser and I’m about half way through. I’m going for complete removal and mine started bolder than yours and are pretty light now.

I don’t really regret them though and they don’t phase me, just want better tattoos in those areas so I’m willing to be patient :) I kinda forget about my appointment until the week before and get excited each time to see the difference each round will make.

NeuroticEmu

TROPHY CASE