Aging is an inevitable fact of life, but that doesn’t mean we cannot benefit from laser tattoo removal when our skin has aged.

“Time waits for no man.” – Geoffrey Chaucer 14th Century

Time results in a change in every aspect of our lives. Every individual experiences different changes over time and these results, in turn, affect other aspects of our lives. Whether you age in your soul, or on your skin, aging happens to all of us. 

It is inevitable. Change is inevitable.

Many times, we got a tattoo as a young adult or teenager, but as we got older, and our skin started to wrinkle, the tattoo didn’t look like it once did, or our souls have changed and we no longer have a connection to this piece of ink. 

Presumably, the tattoo you got at a younger age was much more vibrant and crisp when it was applied. Over time, your body recognizes the ink as a foreign object and tries to remove it. The ink particles are far too large for your lymph cells and immune system to digest and truck away, which then makes your beautiful butterfly appear as a tired old moth. The fuzzy dull appearance is called “blow out” or “time fade”, for obvious reasons. This may be your reason to want to remove the tattoo.

Now that you know what happens to your tattoo, let’s talk about what happens to the appearance and structure of your aging skin. 

When your skin ages the effects depend on controllable and uncontrollable life factors, things that we choose to do and things that happen beyond our control. Sun exposure (natural and artificial), diet, exercise, smoking, and even our sleep position exaggerates the aging process of our skin. For example, smoking can produce free radicals or once-healthy oxygen cells to become inactive and unstable.

Things that we are stuck with that we can’t change are our genetics, heritage, sex, and even gravity. The loss of fatty tissue between our skin and muscles makes our skin look flabby like a turkey neck, jowls or double chin. Skin changes that occur are an increase in texture, and skin becomes slack, more transparent and also more fragile. 

The epidermis or top layer of the skin becomes thinner and makes the skin appear transparent. Between these two layers becomes flattened and results in the skin becoming fragile and easier to injure.

The roughness or increased texture comes from the loss of elastic tissue in the dermal layer where your collagen and elastin provide volume. Wrinkles and rough skin can still be treated, but what’s underneath it is more important. 

Can I get laser tattoo removal on my aged and wrinkled skin?

The answer is yes. There are a few bespoke details that your laser technician will have to consider both clinically and practically, due to the lack of volume to the skin, the dissipation of energy is less. To account for that, the laser tech should avoid using smaller, hotter spot sizes and fluency. The thought process should be low and slow. Practically, other health problems may be present and medications to treat other body systems are relevant to laser tattoo removal. Anticoagulants or blood thinners may be present and could complicate post-care if bruising or pinpoint bleeding occurs. 

Lastly, even the type of tape used to hold the post-treatment bandage needs to be considered. Elastoplast or transparent waffle tape has an adhesive that can tear thin skin when removing it. Hypoallergenic paper tape is much more gentle and should avoid any problems with adhesive.

If you have any questions regarding your tattoo removal contact Jim at Unthink Inc today.

At Unthink Inc., we want you to be happy in the skin you’re in, with or without your tattoo.