Thinking of becoming the girl with the dragon tattoo? Or joining the likes of Johnny Depp, who has been inked at least 14 times? Or perhaps you're considering a little body jewelery to show your personality? More than ever, body art is recognized as an acceptable form of self-expression. Before getting tattooed or pierced, know the health concerns, costs, and other factors students weigh in making the decision.

BY DAN FALLS, RECENT GRADUATE, WESTERN CAROLINA UNIVERSITY WITH ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY DON RAUF, CO-EDITOR, STUDENT HEALTH 101

From art majors to law students, people from all walks of life have tattoos and piercings. According to a recent Student Health 101 poll of 655 students in the U.S. and Canada, 13.6% have a tattoo, and about 1 in 3 students said they might get one. About 1 in 5 students said they have a piercing other than in an earlobe. Most often those piercings are in the ear cartilage, but many students also have nose, belly button, eyebrow, and/or lip piercings.

Another trend in body art is gauging, which involves stretching earlobe holes gradually to accommodate large decorative rings and posts. Just 2% polled said they have gauges, but 68% said they know people who have them.

A Meaningful and (Usually) Permanent Decision
Tattoos have more permanence than piercings, and many students who have them advise getting ones that have a deep personal significance. Several students polled said they have tattoos in remembrance or in honor of loved ones. Lacie Lee Coburn, a senior at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, displays �mom� on a bow above her neck for the strength her mother has given her. �I have it on my neck because it holds me together just like mom [holds my life together],� Coburn says.

Sean Fuellhart, a student at Shepherd University in Shepherdstown, West Virginia, says that his tattoo captures his beliefs and life philosophy. The tattoo, located on his upper back, reads �Vincit Qui Se Vincit,� which is Latin for �He conquers who conquers himself.�

�It means that if you know yourself, inside and out, weaknesses and strengths, you can do anything,� he says. �I�m happy with it because I feel it will be as meaningful later in life as it is today.�
Others simply get tattoos to be fun or creative. Students mentioned everything from a smiling Felix the Cat winking and giving the thumbs-up on a buttock to an image of a moose on a foot.

Lindsey Shrubsole, a tattooed student at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, Canada, adds, �It�s also a good idea to pick a place on your body that won�t really change shape as you gain or lose weight or get older. Good options include the inner forearm, the calves, and upper back.�

While there are many reasons to get a tattoo, keep in mind that a band name or a trendy logo may be a passing fad that won�t have much meaning to you later in life.

�My advice to anyone getting a tattoo would be to think about it for a year first,� says Lauren Anderson, a student at John Carroll University in University Heights, Ohio. �Impulse tattoos may seem cool at the time, but no one wants to regret their body art and have to cover it up. Worse would be having to get it removed, which costs more than getting it done in the first place and is more painful.�

Costly Going On; Costlier Coming Off
While a search around the Internet shows the cost of getting a tattoo ranges from $100 to $250, expect to pay hundreds or even $1,000 or more for dermatologic surgery to remove one. Tattoos can be removed by a dermatologic surgeon on an outpatient basis with local anesthesia. The American Society of Dermatologic Surgery lists the most common techniques as laser surgery, dermabrasion (a �sanding� of the skin), or surgical excision (requiring scalpel and stitches). Whatever the technique, it can leave a scar on your skin as well as your wallet.
Removal can have other health risks as well. To learn more about removal, visit http://www.asds.net/TattooRemovalInformation.aspx.

Body Art in the Workplace
As tattoos and piercings have become more acceptable, they may not be the career killers they once were. Still, some see body art as �unprofessional.� So before going under the needle, consider the professional environment in which you wish to work.

�I currently work in a very conservative environment, and all my tattoos and piercings must be covered or removed,� says Jennifer Trippe, who provides massage therapy for an affluent clientele in Cullowhee, North Carolina. �Even though tattoos are more common and accepted in social settings, I don�t think the conservative business world is ready to accept them.�

Robert Kizer is a doctoral student in counseling psychology at the University of Missouri�Kansas City. Unlike typical doctoral students, Kizer has multiple tattoos, unusual piercings, and dreadlocks. He offers his insight as to how interviewers may view tattoos and piercings: �Although my appearance has not been a limitation in counseling sessions or other psychological services, I have found that it presents a particular challenge when working with certain other professionals, especially those in administrative or executive positions.� Kizer stresses that students need to consider their future career paths to ensure body art will not be an issue.

Health Considerations
Once you decide to get inked or pierced, cleanliness should be your first concern. Dirty equipment can cause infection and even spread disease. �My first tattoo was done in a place that I later found out reused needles, so I was put through years of testing to make sure that I hadn�t contracted any diseases (like HIV or Hepatitis B),� says Jenna*, a student at Loyalist College in Belleville, Ontario, Canada. �I was lucky and didn�t contract anything, but now I�m very careful.�

One student mentioned giving herself a tattoo at home that got very infected�that�s why it�s essential to only get a tattoo or piercing from a professional.

A piercing or tattoo license gives some assurance of cleanliness and professionalism, but do your own careful check before putting your money down.

*Name changed for privacy.

DAN FALLS RECENTLY GRADUATED WITH A DEGREE IN NUTRITION AND DIETETICS FROM WESTERN CAROLINA UNIVERSITY IN CULLOWHEE, NORTH CAROLINA.

 

STUDENTVIEWS
Andrea Cortesi at Northern Illinois University describes the pain and gain of getting body art.
Hi guys, my name is Andrea, I�m a sophomore at NIU, Illinois University, and today I�m going to be talking to you about my first tattoo! I got it this summer, and just FYI, it was probably the worst thing I ever went through. Anybody who says �Oh, I have a tattoo, it�s not so bad,� I may be a baby, but I�ve never experienced any sort of pain; I�ve never broken a bone, never gotten stitches. The worst I�ve done is fallen and scraped my elbow, so this is definitely a new type of pain for me. I got it on my foot, it�s about this small. It was eighty dollars, plus tip, and it is my sister designed it for me. I�ve always wanted a tattoo, I�ve gotten tons of piercings; I have eight in my ears and my belly button, so I thought I�ve always wanted a tattoo, I�ve just never known what I wanted, and it took a really long time.

My sister and I came up with a ton of ideas, and we got matching ones, and we designed something that had the first initial of all my siblings and my mother into one tattoo. So, it looks like this. Most people think it looks like a flower. I�m normally just like, yeah, people think it�s a flower, but it actually has quite significance towards it. 

I want to get another tattoo, but since I want to be a teacher when I grow up, I want it on my wrist, and you know in society today, tattoos are a big deal, especially trying to get a job, and I don�t think that�s an appropriate place for a teacher to have it, since children will be seeing it a lot by writing on the board, so I�d have to wear long sleeves everyday or an appropriate bracelet to cover it up.

Um, back to the pain of my tattoo, it hurt for a, it was horrible. I remember walking out of the tattoo parlor praising the tattoo artist because they had these sleeves and all over their neck, and I�m crying about this, I wasn�t crying, but I was complaining about a ten-minute tattoo.

But, I�d say if you guys want a tattoo, make sure it�s something you�re going to want for the rest of your life. I personally love my tattoo and would never take it back. It definitely has a lot of significance towards my life, my family is a huge part of my life, so I�m going to have that tattoo to remind me of it every day. Another tip, just know what you�re getting yourself into. By ready to pay some money, go to a very safe place. I actually went to the one where my brother got a tattoo and my sister got her tattoos. My brother has three tattoos, my sister has five, so I was in quite good hands. So, I would definitely research where you�re going to go before, just to be safe.

Anything else, I mean, have fun, be creative. Tattoos are art, and they express yourself. Personally, I like them. Some people might hate them, but you�ve got to deal with it. So, I hope you enjoyed my little speech. I will see you guys later. Bye!

Tiffany Hall at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign talks about the path that led her to getting tattooed.
Hello, uh, my name�s Tiffany Hall. I am a senior in education for French and Spanish, and I do have two tattoos, actually. The first one I got is a music note. Um, it is on my side, and I got that tattoo when I was nineteen years old. I�m twenty-two now. I decided to get it after my freshman year of college when I was home. It really, the personal significance would be that I have been signing my whole life and dancing, and music is really an important thing in my life and I really just wanted to do it.

The second one I got is on my wrist and you can't really see it, but it says ______, which means 'dream always' in French, and I got that after returning from my semester abroad in Paris, and it was really significant to me because it signified me getting through a semester living in France and how French has played a major role in my life, and it�s probably my favorite out of the two, I really like it.

Advice, I would say, I don't know, just have a reason for getting one because for a long time I was wanting one but didn�t really know what I wanted, and now I'm glad I waited instead of just getting random stars on my foot, or something like that.

I do have piercings; I have my earlobes, and I have my belly button pierced. That�s been pierced for about four, five years now. I know there is health risks associated with it, just infection and stuff like that, but I was really careful with my piercings and my tattoos to make sure they didn�t get infected by putting the right ointments on and just taking care of them, not going in chlorine or water after I got them in.

Uh, about my jobs, I am able to cover both of my tattoos and my piercings, so I�m not very worried about it. Hopefully it won�t affect me getting a teaching job, but I don�t feel like they�ll be able to see it. I have a watch that covers it, so I think I�ll be good.

Um, I don�t know, I think that�s about it. But, I hope that helps, and thanks.

 

FIND OUT MORE
To learn more about tattoos and piercings, including health considerations, VISIT the following websites:

Association of Professional Piercers: http://www.safepiercing.org/
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: http://www.cdc.gov/features/bodyart/
MedlinePlus: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/piercingandtattoos.html