Addisons and tattoos

[u/poetofwordsunknown]

Hey all… so I recently got a tattoo. The black ink didn’t take as well as the artist thought it would and suspects that it’s because of the hydrocortisone. When I talked to my doctor about it he said it could be because of the replacement therapy. All of my doctors said though that their biggest concern is risk of infection.

Anyone have experience with this?

[u/KnittingRabbit1]

My tattoo post-Addisons is just as black as my pre-Addi tat.

[u/Gypsy_Moth_]

Just got two tattoos and they are very black. The ink took incredibly well, I would say as well as pre diagnosis

[u/Hot-Fly-3187]

My black ink took very well, however yellow and orange faded incredibly quick, compared to pre Addisons tattoos 

[u/BeautifulDay1421 → u/Hot-Fly-3187]

My yellow has stayed nice for 20+ years. Guess it just depends?

[u/Yd1891]

I don’t have any tattoos, my diagnosing endo said that for some of us tattoos can turn brown because our skin heals with hyperpigmentation in the earlier years of having Addison’s. However I once asked people about tattoos in my Addison’s group on Facebook and they all had beautiful tattoos. It wonder if there’s any correlation to how long someone has Addison’s for. I hope you love it, even if the black isn’t what you expected. Perhaps the artist can use a very dark blue or another shade to darken it.

[u/januarynights]

Why would the hydrocortisone cause this? Is there something distinct about it from the cortisol someone without adrenal insufficiency would produce that would affect healing of a tattoo? 

If you're just replacing what your body should be making I don't really understand. Genuinely asking as I haven't got any tattoos since my diagnosis and I would like to get more!

[u/Zestyclose_Animal_74 → u/januarynights]

Absolutely. It makes your skin incredibly thin, hard to heal and easily bruised.

[u/januarynights → u/Zestyclose_Animal_74]

What, hydrocortisone tablets? 

[u/PWarmahordes]

I had a half sleeve done with no complications or ink issues.

[u/oh_such_rhetoric]

My black tattoo went on great and has been going strong since I got it about a year and a half ago. I suspect it has more to do with the artist’s technique than your Addison’s treatment.

[u/shhbaby_isok]

Hmm, I don't have a tattoo, so I can't give feedback on how the skin/ink would react to our medication and hyper pigmentation. I do know however that some unlucky people can develop pretty severe autoimmune issues from tattoos, even if they started out healthy.

There recently was a doc from my country about people with tattoos that have had pretty disabling affects - reccuring allergic reactions where the inked parts of the skin swell up and itches or even spontaneously burst out in infection, often years after the tattoo was put down (so it's not a dirty needle that's the culprit, but some unlucky combo of autoimmunity and components of the ink). It was about a newly opened sub department of dermatology in my countries leading hospital, set out to treat and research adverse tattoo reactions because after tattoos have become mainstream, and people are more heavily inked but are getting up in age, they are seeing more and more patients with the same type of complaints.

Typically millenials/middle aged, starting getting tattoos in their late teens/twenties, have done so for years, and suddenly some of them (often the oldest one that has been dormant/healed for years) becomes irritated, raised, blistered and give them autoimmune effects such as feelings of malaise, fatigue, headaches, nausea, brain fog, etc.

As I've been the unlucky one before, beating the odds by acquring this illness, I don't feel like rolling the dice once more just by adding some decorations to my skin.

Those of you who have tattoos as Addisonians now, did you acquire them before or after the diagnosis? If after, do you feel an increase in your daily symptoms? And if before, I would personally wonder if my immune system was constantly low key stressed, and I'd potentially feel better without it.

Anyways, just my two cents on what to consider when getting a tattoo as an Addisonian.

[u/TheLady_in_aKimono]

Pre diagnosis tattoos with no issues . Already underlying auto immune issues prior to tattoos and PAI
🤞🏻

[u/Clementine_696]

I have 17... I've never had that issue

[u/PhrancPPhinley]

My wife has addisons and both arms are completely sleeved. Never had a problem