Type 2 Diabetes & Tattoos

[jmjacobson101]

I have both. Here's my story and then a quick question at the end.
I am a tattoo artist apprentice. I have been tattooing for a year & a half now. In this time period I have been tattooed 19 times in 15 months. ALL of my tattoos have healed within 8-14 days. I was diagnosed in September of this year with type 2 diabetes. Looking back.... I have shown symptoms of diabetes for about 3 years. Drinking TONS of water, going to the bathroom alot, getting up in the middle of the night, exhaustion, tired all the time. I just put the symptoms in a category of "I work ALOT." Two & three jobs at a time. I am currently taking 1500mg Metformin ER and also I have Osteoarthritis and take 4 Tylenol Arthritis a day. Since I have been taking the drugs.... my tattoos don't heal right. I was tattooed twice since DX'ed. The first tattoo was the same day that I was DX'ed. Line work & black shading. It healed within 8 days. Three weeks later I was tattooed in the same spot with all of the color. It has been a month and it is still not completely healed. I also got a scratch on my hand three weeks ago.... it's still not completely healed. This has never happened to me before. Diabetes just doesn't start the day you get diagnosed, Right? I brought this up to my Dr & he said it's cause I don't have my sugar under control. He said he would look into it when I go back for my 3 month check up, but that's not until January. I am friends with a Dialasys Nurse & she said it may be because of the drug making my blood too thin and if it's not taken care of, I could be put on dialasys.
What do you all think?

[jer.lawrence]

What are your sugar levels like now?

[jmjacobson101]

They average between 116 & 124. I'd say that I kinda have them under control.

I'm gonna stop by the Kroger that I get my prescriptions filled & talk to the pharmacist & see what interactions Metformin has with Tylenol. I've looked on the web but found nothing. Could it be possible that I'm taking too much tylenol?

[princesslinda]

Both the fish oil and the pravastatin can cause thinning of the blood.

Are you keeping your wound and tattoo covered and using Neosporin on it?

How often do you check your blood sugars?

[jmjacobson101]

Both the fish oil and the pravastatin can cause thinning of the blood.

Are you keeping your wound and tattoo covered and using Neosporin on it?

How often do you check your blood sugars?

I just started both of those about 2 weeks ago.

Yes, my tattoo is covered in saran wrap for 4-5 days & changed out 2-3x daily. No. I don't use neosporin.... not good for tattoos. I use A&D Ointment.

I check my blood sugar 2-3x a day. Unless I am trying to eat something new that I haven't tested before.

[Harold]

Did my first and second tattoos this year and did a lot of reading up on the care of. From what my reading came up with the saran wrap is good for about the first 3 or 4 hours. After that it just creates the prefect breeding ground for germs. Post saran wrap washing with an antibacterial non scented liquid soap several times a day then a good layer of A&D applied frequently should work to keep the skin supple and from scabbing. Provided you stay clear of an infection you should be okay. Had a little infection show up along a black line on my first tattoo about a week and a half after getting the tattoo. It was on the surface and washing it off with soap and hand only it removed all of the infection. Since my dermatologist the previous year had told me, after a biopsy he did, to use polysporin and not to use neosporin because it can cause a rash I used the polysporin with good results. Then after 3 days switched to Aquaphor for about a week. Have dry skin, common with diabetes, so kept putting on a lotion for a couple of months. That was my first and I was not on metformin when the tattoo was done. Started the metformin about 3 weeks later and it was a couple of weeks later before I would say the tattoo was healed. The second tattoo took about half the time to heal but a lot of the ink had leaked out and would roll off after washing. Once that stopped happening I went in and had both tattoos re colored in. Surprisingly they healed real quick. All I did wash wash and apply the polysporin for 5 days. Then for a week applied Eucerin 'PLUS SMOOTHING ESSENTIALS' and then it seemed healed. Keep expecting to see some ink rolling off but so far nothing but a couple of spots with dry skin trying to come off.

As for taking longer to heal, yes diabetes is directly related. Scratches that use to heal in 3 to 5 days now take 2 to 3 weeks before they disappear. The odd thing is that it is not always consistent. Nor does it always seem to be related to my average bg level.

[khewell]

I have both. Here's my story and then a quick question at the end.
I am a tattoo artist apprentice. I have been tattooing for a year & a half now. In this time period I have been tattooed 19 times in 15 months. ALL of my tattoos have healed within 8-14 days. I was diagnosed in September of this year with type 2 diabetes. Looking back.... I have shown symptoms of diabetes for about 3 years. Drinking TONS of water, going to the bathroom a lot, getting up in the middle of the night, exhaustion, tired all the time. I just put the symptoms in a category of "I work ALOT." Two & three jobs at a time. I am currently taking 1500mg Metformin ER and also I have Osteoarthritis and take 4 Tylenol Arthritis a day. Since I have been taking the drugs.... my tattoos don't heal right. I was tattooed twice since DX'ed. The first tattoo was the same day that I was DX'ed. Line work & black shading. It healed within 8 days. Three weeks later I was tattooed in the same spot with all of the color. It has been a month and it is still not completely healed. I also got a scratch on my hand three weeks ago.... it's still not completely healed. This has never happened to me before. Diabetes just doesn't start the day you get diagnosed, Right? I brought this up to my Dr & he said it's cause I don't have my sugar under control. He said he would look into it when I go back for my 3 month check up, but that's not until January. I am friends with a Dialasys Nurse & she said it may be because of the drug making my blood too thin and if it's not taken care of, I could be put on dialasys.
What do you all think?

I have several tattoos most of which I got after the symptoms of diabetes showed up. They include a full back piece that took 27 hours to complete, black and grey only. Several on both arms with a LOT of detail. The healing process I had was usually 14 days except in the areas of extensive shading and color, these always took about a week longer. The artist that did mine said it was because with the shading and color you are basically creating a road rash effect (IE. destroying the top layers of skin) takes a little longer to heal that. He recommends keeping the area moist with something like tattoo goo or bag balm to aid in the healing process.I have noticed scratches on my hands and feet that take longer to heal than in years past. I think the healing process is a little slower being diabetic, the important thing is to keep it clean, wash it gently with warm soap and water, pat it dry, and apply some type of ointment to it for a couple of weeks.
I have found that during a tattoo process (3-4 hr) I need to really load up on carbs as sometimes it can be as stressfully on your body as an aerobic workout.

[jmjacobson101]

I think the healing process is a little slower being diabetic, the important thing is to keep it clean, wash it gently with warm soap and water, pat it dry, and apply some type of ointment to it for a couple of weeks.
I have found that during a tattoo process (3-4 hr) I need to really load up on carbs as sometimes it can be as stressfully on your body as an aerobic workout.

I'm sure the healing process is a little slower because of me being a diabetic but it just sems VERY weird that I've had diabetic symptoms for about 3 years but never put 2 and 2 together. I have gotten 17 tattoos in the past 15 months and they have always healed within 14 days max. But it just seems that now that I'm on these drugs, they heal like ****.

Harold:
As for the saran wrap wrapping technique, If I get a traditional style tattoo then I only saran wrap for 1 1/2 days, then Curel or Vaseline Intensive Therapy 3-4x a day. If I get a "Realism" tattoo, then I saran wrap for up to 5 days. Changing it out and cleaning it whenever it gets "muddy" inside the saran wrap. Applying A&D Ointment & then re-wrapping it. After the 4th or 5th day, the tattoo will FLAKE OVER and peel off. There is no scabbing! This method is used by almost all of the big name "Realism" tattoo artists. My tattoos keep their brightness for much longer than most because of the wrapping technique we use. This technique will keep you from getting an infection as long as you wash your hands & tattoo as needed.

If your tattoo loses color, then it's the tattooers fault for not getting good saturation or he's just using **** inks.

[jkane13]

Had 2 tattoos since. Both healed in about 12 days. Both were scabbed over within 5 days. I don't use saran wrap or anything to ever cover them. Just wear clothes when I sleep that I don't care about getting stained with the colors.

I only take 1000 mg met a day at 500 twice a day doses. Minimal doses of lisinipril, simvastatan, and aspirin. I do take a Tylenol or Motrin at night sometimes for old bone aches, but I don't think I was doing that with either tattoo.

Maybe you are just getting too old! Old people don't heal as fast. :eek: :T

[jmjacobson101]

Had 2 tattoos since. Both healed in about 12 days. Both were scabbed over within 5 days. I don't use saran wrap or anything to ever cover them. Just wear clothes when I sleep that I don't care about getting stained with the colors.
Maybe you are just getting too old! Old people don't heal as fast. :eek: :T

I don't scab, I flake & peel. That's one of the positive things about saran wrapping. I actually just got one on Monday & it's starting to peel right now. So maybe I'm worrying too much about it.

Ok.... I get enough "OLD" jokes from my employees just cause they're 18-25! :whistling

[erik316]

This is making me want to get a tattoo, my brother owns his own shop and i may have to make a visit. I wondered about the same things with the heeling.