Why, after 1 1/2 months wont my tattoo heal?

Question

It's on my wrist.... I've had other tattoos with color and everything but this one wont seem to heal. It's dry and scaly and really itchy on the sides. It's been like this for a while now and wont change. help!!

Answer 1

possibly because it is on your wrist, which is a place that is constantly stretching and flexing. so it takes longer to heal. (i've seen the same thing in other "moving" body parts. just keep it hydrated and you may have to go back for a touch up because it could heal lighter in some spots because of the movement.

Answer 2

hey look you tat should of heal by now. you need to go to the doc and see if it infected so he can put you on some meds before it gets worse. do you have red ink in your tat? if so you can be having a allergic reaction to the ink. your tat souled have heal within two to three weeks. so like go NOW
Tattoo Healing

During a tattoo the skin secretes fluid forming droplets on the surface. If the blood particles in the fluid dry on the surface they stick on the surface looking like little black specs. If allowed to remain they adhere strongly and other damaged cells and particles accumulate, they dry and begin scab formation. Scabbing prolongs the healing process because epithelial cells must grow beneath this heavy burden scab to seal the skin. Eventually though the skin will heal in spite of the obstacles created.
Presuming minimal physical damage to the skin, the speed of healing is related to the amount of moisture in the area. The three top rated healing ointments are Bacitracin Zinc, A & D Ointment and Petroleum. It is the petroleum in these products that produces the best healing speed because it makes the skin occlusive. Occlusive means neither water nor air can penetrate to the skin surface. The skin responds to an occlusive condition by providing moisture to the area internally providing the ultimate healing condition.
When a tattoo is just finished there is generally no oozing (exudates) and the surface is relatively dry (an indication that the procedure did not excessively damage the skin). When a petroleum product is applied (an occlusive condition is created) droplets of fluid will begin to appear because the body is producing exudates. Exudates are necessary to create an environment which stimulates rapid wound healing. By allowing the area to dry (which we should not), the beneficial cells are removed, cells dry, necroses and even serve as a bacteria medium. A wound maintained in a moist environment with exudates has a lower infection rate than a wound which is dry.
Because this mechanism of the body was not understood it was thought petroleum caused ink to leave the skin. Today we know this is not true. Three or four days are required for new epidermal cells to grow across the surface. Damaged cells will float on the top of the new cells until removed. Light amounts of petroleum or moisturizing lotions should be continued for another week but Bacitracin, if used, should not be used for more than 3 or 4 days. The constant application of antibacterial is not necessary to avoid infection. Antibacterial products actually interfere with the wound healing process.
An ideal procedure, immediately after the tattoo is finished, would include applying a petroleum based ointment and watching the area for oozing and droplet formation instead of bandaging and sending the client away. If the droplets that ooze to the surface are pink they should be dabbed off carefully, or the area lightly rubbed periodically to prevent platelet and dead cell buildup. Removing those little black specs as soon as they

Answer 3

That sounds ALOT like a tattoo I got in June on the back of my finger and it STILL is exactly like yours. Did you accidentally bump it against any thing? Or hurt it in any way? Because if you did it's very very likely that it got infected like mine. My tattoo had red dye in it as well and it itches like heck. So it's probably the red dye, and getting infected. Hopefully yours won't be like mine, and it'll heal. My best advice is to keep putting a neosporin-like ointment on it to keep it moist for the scaly dry-ness, and above all try your ultimate hardest to not touch it, itch it, pick at it. I know it's hard, but you gotta. Perhaps put a good sized bandaid on it to keep it from getting irritated further. Hope that helps :)

Answer 4

Is the ink red? Though I've had red ink in other tattoos, when I got a tattoo that was large and mostly red on my arm it was INCREDIBLY itchy. My artist said that red ink causes allergic reactions in many people, and it is also aggravated by sunlight. My artist told me if it's unbearable it's a good idea to see your doctor to make sure it's not a more severe allergic reaction that may require topical or oral medication.

Answer 5

my latest tat on my thigh seems to be the same, but only for 3 weeks so not so bad, my others healed in under 2 weeks though. in my case i think it was cos i wasnt cleaning it and applying the tattoo balm stuff as carefully/often as i did with my others. go back to the tattooist. sometimes i use savlon which seems better at healing it than the balm that is sold. good luck :)

Answer 6

That tattoo goo tin is good stuff but the A & D works well to. Personally i have quite a few tattoos and they will peel thats part of it. just dont pick at it or pull the skin off let it come off by itself. keep it moisturized to that seems to help. i would probably say that the rest of that stuff was a waste of money.

Answer 7

Some take longer than others. The wrist is a sensative place to get inked. Keep putting lotion on it.

Answer 8

Go to a doctor it sounds to me its infected it happens

Answer 9

i would go to the doctor to see if yoiu have a infection in the tattoo

Answer 10

GIRL IT IS INFECTED. A tatoo usually heals in a about a week not a month! Please go check it out