Is tattoo addiction a REAL addiction?

Once thought of as a passing trend and a way to mark slaves, body art such as tattoo’s and body piercing has become more popular than ever. A large part of the consumers are repeat consumers raising the question can body art become addicting? Many people who get tattoo’s say no, because the definition of addiction in Kasl article "Defining Addictiion" states that addiction is a process that involves a slipt in the personality where life-affirming side and the addictive part become increasingly separated (p. 103)" and many people don’t want to think of themselves as conforming to this idea. A blogger on Bot Street Journal didn’t believe that tattoo’s was a form a addiction and said “Most people who get tattoos do so simply because they want them; they do not possess the weakness of character that leads addicts in the position of being compelled to do something”. This can be question because what people don’t know is that getting a tattoo releases endorphins, produced by the pituitary gland and the hypothalamus. The effect is similar to taking opiates and the "endorphin rush" produces a sense of well-being. Endorphins work as "natural pain killers." Finding this out was shocking however I could understand why people then would be anticipating the next tattoo before even leaving the tattoo parlor.

Although there are some people who look at the word ‘addiction’ and get completely turned off and does not want to be associated with it, there are others who profit and make the word ‘addiction’ into a positive. Researching this topic with the word ‘addiction’ in the search bar many tattoo parlors came up as a result labeling their establishment with that word in their name. Also from reading blogs many said that tattoo addiction is the ‘healthy addiction’. Here we see how this form of addiction can quickly be incorporated and accepted into our culture as normal when in fact any type of addiction can be harmful in a way. People have also thrown the “at least I’m not addicted to drugs or alcohol” card out placing more emphasis on one addiction and leaving the other (body art addiction) out of the discussion of how harmful it can actually be. Body piercing addiction can act in the same way as tattoo addiction. What's even more common is the side effects these addictions share (kind of similar to sexual anorexia and sex addiction).

Myrna L. Armstrong, a professor at Texas Technical University School of Nursing, has been studying the psychology and social patterns behind the tattoo fetish for the last dozen years. College students, teenagers, military or career women were all surveyed and Armstrong found that about 40 percent had two or more tattoos. Why do some of these people thrive off the idea of getting tattoo’s and body piercing, especially considering the pain that is brought with the art as well as the permanent mark on your body? Some might do it out of impulse and others because this is the new 'hip' thing to do. By now we've already established that celebrities send subliminal messages to the average American, and if their bodies are decorated from head to toe with tattoo’s and body art, its obvious to predict that that’s what others would start to do. In this you tube clip you see many celebrities with tattoos that have graced magazine covers inspiring spectators to imitate. I can remember when the Rap artist EVE first came out and had paw prints on her boobs how every girl in my neighborhood went out and got the same thing. I’m not going to lie I wanted it too, for the first couple of days, and till this day I’m so happy I didn’t impulsively act on this because I believe I’d be sorry today.

The impulsiveness around tattoos is also a big concern. Many get tattoos and in a year or so later wish they never had it. This is also seen with celebrities. Angelina Jolie was once with Billie Bob Thornton and got his name tattooed on her, but now that her career has taken off and now she’s a mother and no longer with him I wonder does she regrets ever getting it? Well I think we can answer this question ourselves because I haven’t seen the tattoo on her body since she was dating Thornton, she more than likely had it removed. This process is very expensive and the average Joe normally can’t afford this procedure. This rapidly growing trend is also perpetuated in popular music. The Rap star Fabo of D4l made a song specifically about tattoos and the sexiness surrounding them. The video takes place in a tattoo parlor and displays women showing off their tattoo. The lyrics and melody of the song is very catchy and could persuade one to in fact go get a tattoo, I know when I heard the song I wanted one (I sustained though).

Viewed as the safe addiction, tattoos can indeed have a negative effect on ones health. Good health is very important, that’s why one should be very careful when deciding to get a tattoo. Tattoo inks are made of dyes created from a range of metals, which are mostly toxic. The most common effects of tattoos are hypersensitivity to the red dyes (cinnabar), and photosensitivity to the yellow pigments (cadmium, which is another toxic metal). I haven't found documentation of anyone getting cancer from tattoos, but dark inks can make melanoma, skin cancer, harder to detect. Another well-known infection from tattoos is Hepatitis. Well-known signs of an infection after getting a tattoo are high fever, puss leaking from the wound, and red streaks extending from the tattoo. Overall getting a tattoo can be a big mistake. You could possibly end up with health problems, such as getting a small innocent infection or even attracting HIV.