u/Odd_Opportunity_9606

Hey! So I have been doing lots of research on tattoo removal & that‘s how i found the technique SAW/AWT that has been reasearched into since 2017.

In short:

1. The picosecond laser shatters the tattoo ink into much smaller fragments.
2. Acoustic Wave Therapy sends mechanical pressure waves into the treated skin immediately afterward.
3. These waves are thought to:
   • increase local blood flow,
   • stimulate lymphatic drainage,
   • increase metabolic activity,
   • and help the body remove the fragmented ink particles faster.

Obviously I‘m not a professional, but do I think this is actually the future of tattoo removal? Probably not. Clinics would have to buy a second, very expensive machine and would sell less treatment sessions. However maybe one session would just become two times as expensive. But I still thought I would share.

I actually found one clinic that uses AWT & fractional lasers alongside a picosecond laser & they still say that the rule of thumb is that the removal takes about 10 sessions over a course of 2 years. So basically the same as most other clinic, except their price for one session is STARTING at 440 €

Also if it was really as promising, I‘m sure that more research would have been done on it in the last 9 years.

Here’s some articles about it:

https://doc-tattooentfernung.com/schnellere-tattooentfernung-mit-pico-laser-und-akustischer-stosswelle/

https://www.vennhealthcare.com/tattoo-removal-awt/

https://clinicalcasereportsjournal.com/article/1000135/combined-picosecond-laser-tattoo-removal-with-an-acoustic-shock-wave-device-a-case-series

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/jvc2.70042

https://zimmerusa.com/z-news/tri-zwave-tattoo/

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/25785478251398320

https://www.ovid.com/jnls/dermatologicsurgery/abstract/10.1097/dss.0000000000003303~acoustic-shockwave-therapy-as-an-adjunct-to-picosecond-laser?redirectionsource=fulltextview

https://www.medestheticsmag.com/news/article/21148632/rap-speeds-laser-tattoo-removal

I had my first appointment for tattoo removal today in literally the best clinic in my country.

the tech told me that it was going to take 2-2.5 years until my tattoo is fully gone.

And of course I know that this is relatively good, compared to other people who take much longer but my tattoo is on my forearm & i see it every day & in summer i see it all the time. & i hate it so much.

i‘m really sad that i‘m gonna have to look at it for another 2.5 years.

i just booked an appointment for my first tattoo removal session & i‘m super excited!

i have a 5.5x6.5 cm large tattoo on my forearm that i want GONE!

i know everyone says waiting is the key, which i will do, or at least i will listen to the dermatologis. money is not a huge problem for me so i am open to getting a few more treatments than necessary if that means i will be tattoo free even a few months sooner.

i also have read from quite a few people on here that the laser basically just does a relatively small amount of work & the rest is on your body.

i think i am in a relatively good place bc i am young (23 years old), don’t smoke & rarely drink. but my diet could be a lot healthier & i am vegetarian and often don’t have enough protein but idk if that affects the removal at all.

anyways i have read A LOT of tips on how you’re apparently able to help with tattoo removal basically by helping your body with a better lymphatic drainage but also some other stuff:

• vitamin c supplement
• lymphatic drainage massage, vibration plates
• drink 2-4 L water
• exercise (cardio, yoga)
• drinking nettle tea
• going to sauna up to 4 times per week
• aloe vera or healing ointment when fresh
• rosehip oil after it’s healed

feel free to add stuff or tell me if you think something on my list is bullshit.

also question: i‘m having the session on monday & father‘s day is on sunday and i was wondering if you think i would be able to hide it bc i don’t want my parents to know!

Ok, i‘m sorry at this point i‘m actually terrorizing this subreddit with my questions but i just have so many (if only i was that cautious when i got the tattoo in the first place huh?) I was looking really hard for a good doctor to do my tattoo removal & i think i found the perfect one. He‘s been doing tattoo removals since 2008 & he’s one of the only ones in my country that has a PicoSure laser.

I just got an offer from him to get my 5.5x6.5 cm tattoo lasered for 160 € per session. i am genuinely surprised by that prize & was thinking it would cost 2 or 3 times as much, since pico is also the most expensive laser.

He wrote in his email that usually they are able to remove tattoos in about 10 sessions (sometimes more, sometimes less).

But he also wrote that sessions are usually spaced 4-6 weeks apart.

On here everyone is very against doing treatments that close but is it really that bad? Of course the doctors want to make a lot of money but don’t they also want to give good result?

Has anyone done sessions that close & what was your experience?

I hate a tattoo i got at 18. i already got a cover up at a very good tattoo place at 19 but it still looks bad. it’s also way too dark for me. for the past 2 years i have been thinking about it every waking hour of my life. it’s about 5x6 cm (at the widest/longest place). i feel so insecure about it. i want to have it removed as soon as possible. i ha been thinking about lasers for the past year but i don’t like the idea at all. it‘s gonna take YEARS and i won’t even know if it will be fully gone.

i think surgery would be the best decision for me. i found a surgeon in London (Paul Banwell). i really liked the results on his website. he’s quite expensive (at least 1.5 k pounds for the surgery). i don’t mind a small/midsize scar & honestly prefer it over ghosting from my tattoo.

but i heard mixed things from people who have gotten excisions on this subreddit. some hating on excision, saying that some uncle of them got a huge scar from it. i even saw a comment that their laser place told them that excision was barbaric and nobody does it anymore. but i also saw some who have gotten it themselves saying that it was the right decision for them.

i know a lot of people on here SWEAR on lasers but my tattoo is on my forearm so it’s visible very often. i hate myself every time i see it. i can’t imagine how bad it will be when it’s patchy for years. i just want it gone…

does anyone have first hand experiences with excision? how visible is your scar? any advice for me?

I have about chest length hair right now but the ends are extremely broken. It also takes forever to grow. i‘m rly tired of the split ends & thin lengths. so i wanted to cut them quite short. i thought about cutting it to between chin & shoulder length.

I‘m already rly excited & think it will look good on me. but of course there’s some part of me that’s a bit scared of such a major change.

I kind of just want to have some opinions from other women who cut their hair short: Did you regret it? Did you love it? Is there anything I should be aware of?

Thanks in advance!! :)