This Person Got A Tattoo In Honor Of Their Family, Tattoo Artist Hid Their Initials In It

For some, deciding to bite the bullet and get inked takes a lot of courage. They can spend hours thinking of the perfect design and pondering how to endure getting their skin poked by small ink-coated needles. And even after it's done, they knock on wood and cross their fingers that everything does heal properly.

After all, the best tattoo is the one you won’t regret. But as it turns out, sometimes it's not completely up to you. Recently, Reddit user TattoodNoobAITA shared their anger with fellow members of the AITA subreddit about an unfortunate incident they had at their local tattoo shop.

"It was important to me that the tattoo looked EXACTLY as it did in the photo," the user wrote. However, they discovered the tattoo artist had gone rogue — they took it upon themselves to secretly tweak the design without bothering to tell their client first. As you can probably guess, this left the user furious. Scroll down to read the whole story, and don't forget to share your thoughts with us in the comments!

The moral philosophers of the AITA subreddit quickly determined that TattoodNoobAITA was not in the wrong in this situation. Within a matter of days, the thread amassed more than 35.7K upvotes and 3.2K comments of angry Redditors demanding justification and even encouraging the creator of this post to take legal action.

Some people voiced their concerns about the artist's behavior, saying they didn't have the right to sign their work because their canvas is a human being. Other commenters even noted that it’s unclear why the artist would sneakily add initials to a design that's not even originally theirs.

This whole incident prompted a heated discussion on what actions should TattoodNoobAITA take. Several users suggested having the area lasered off and redone some time in the future. But this procedure is easier said than done.

According to The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS), getting your tattoo removed with lasers is the most common method today. Tattoos are considered permanent because they consist of thousands of ink particles that are too big to be removed by the normal human immune system.

"The use of lasers helps to break up these particles into smaller pieces that can be removed by the immune system," ASPS wrote. "Depending on the tattoo design, size and color, it may take 1-10 laser sessions to remove the ink."

Tattoo removal specialist Bethany Cirlin told Glamour that a complete removal takes a minimum of 2 1/2 years on average. "Laser treatments should be scheduled three months apart from one another so you get the most out of each treatment. This allows your body to break down as much of the tattoo as it can while also giving your body the opportunity to heal completely before your next session."

Unfortunately, getting your tattoo removed not only takes a long time but can also become quite expensive. The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery estimated that the average cost per session is around $463.

Let’s not forget there might be a great deal of discomfort during the treatment. "Pain is completely individualized, and if you tell someone that something is going to hurt, they go into it with that expectation. That said at my practice, we offer a topical numbing cream, which helps to take the edge off the procedure." But even the numbing cream can’t guarantee it will be pain-free.

However, it is possible to remove only one area of the tattoo. But according to Fairview Laser Clinic, the quality of the outcome is influenced by several factors. They stated that certain inks and pigments are harder to remove. While black ink has the best response to laser tattoo removal, lighter colors are much more difficult to take out, with white being the hardest.

Also, there’s the intensity of the ink. If your tattoo is tightly inked, it can be difficult for the specialist to cleanly clear some parts without removing the other ones you might like. Plus, you should also consider the complexity of the tattoo — homemade tattoos are generally easier to remove than professionally made ones.