Tattoos can help get through tough times by art on top of scars.
“You can’t imagine the psychological therapy that getting tattoos was for me,” says Cristina Cañizares. After a serious car accident, the doctors had to operate on her to save her life. This incident left a 92 stitch scar and a burn-like wound on her thigh.
For her, her physique is very important. “I am super vain. I tried everything. I had laser, creams but nothing changed. The doctors tell you that it can never go away,” she says.
Her personality changed completely, she stopped being herself, she avoided certain types of clothing, she hated seeing her body because of the wounds and she became self-conscious about the world. “After everything I tried, I thought about the tattoo. I posted in a women’s Facebook group to find out about this topic and many responded to me; They even sent me photos of what had been done.”
Cañizares, 32, received virtual recommendations from tattoo artists and that’s when he chose the place and the person who was going to give his life and his body a complete change. “When I wrote to my tattoo artist, she asked me for photos of my injuries so she could study my skin. She asked me to go see her and in the studio she checked me to see how she could work and began to design something, ”explains this young woman from Quito.
The work they did on the first scar on his body lasted more than six hours. When he went to see himself in the mirror, Cañizares could not believe it, he was a totally different person, the scar that had made him hide was no longer visible. That’s when he without thinking he decided to continue with the second tattoo.
“The wounds are still there, but I don’t see them anymore, I had to wait 4 years after my accident to feel like myself again, to be able to wear the clothes I wanted, my way of being is the same as before, my tattoos gave me back the self-esteem that I had lost”, says excited Cristina Cañizares.
An art that heals wounds
For tattoo artists, it is very important that the people who put themselves in their hands leave very happy. The responsibility is very great because their work is permanent and even more so if it is about helping both physically and mentally.
Eduard Landaeta has been a tattoo artist for 5 years and has had several clients looking to hide their scars. “I have to study a lot the skin with wounds because the body is delicate and if we tattoo on one that is not well healed we can hurt it more, we can even enlarge the scar”.
One of the stories that the tattoo artist remembers the most is when he worked with a girl who had a cesarean scar. “When she arrived at the studio, she had a lot of insecurities, she didn’t like her or her husband seeing her and even worse seeing herself in the mirror. The scar had already been 10 years but we had to wait 2 more because her skin was not ready yet.
When she was able to receive her tattoo, she was happy, she told me that she was finally going to wear a bathing suit with peace of mind”, recalls Landaeta. The pain of a tattoo depends a lot on each one. “I have had clients who don’t even feel when I work on their wounds and others who suffer too much. More than the scar is the person”, explains this 39-year-old man.
The skin must be analyzed
There are still those who wait for an opportunity to cover their wounds. Kathleen Vela tore a ligament in her left foot for which she had an operation that left a scar. Her wound caused her fear because after this surgical intervention she was unable to walk for more than two months. “I’m going to make waves in the sea because the water makes me calm and peaceful and I know that this way I’m going to overcome this hard moment in my life”, narrates Vela.
However, the tattoo artist did not give him the best news. “He can’t help me yet. I have to wait a year to get a tattoo because the wound hasn’t healed well yet,” explains Vela. At that time it was a disappointment not being able to get a tattoo but he understood that it was for the good of his body. Now this 22-year-old woman hopes to finally cover her scar.
styles and experience
Ángel Márquez has been a tattoo artist for 7 years. He considers the design extremely important so that the scar is hidden in the best way. “When I make the drawing for the tattoo, it is important to know exactly where the wound is and what it is like: its shape, its texture. This will help me see what is best for the body so that the scar does not show. Together with the client’s ideas, we give advice and our experience to find out what could be better”, explains Márquez.
For each tattooist the styles can be different, in the case of Ángel Márquez, tattoos with a lot of color help the scar to be better covered by the depth and texture that can be given. For Eduard Landaeta, the watercolor style works because, as it does not have a specific shape, it can be adapted according to what is needed.
Both tattoo artists assure that it is a great responsibility but that they are willing to help those who need to hide those scars and wounds that cause them suffering or insecurities. “Seeing how a person who previously did not like his body and who hated it, later transforms and uploads his photos to networks and shows off his tattoo and dresses as he always wanted, that fills me with joy because my work helped this possible”, argues Landaeta.
Art meets psychology
The physicist plays an important role in the psychological aspect of people, as explained by the clinical psychologist, José Ayala. “On the one hand, we have the aesthetic conception that is socially given and, on the other, perhaps the most important to work on: the way in which each subject can perceive and give certain meanings to their own appearance over time and , later, reflect that in their daily behaviors and their interaction with others”, explains Ayala.
An injury can cause a person’s psychological construct to be broken by the sudden change in physical appearance. “When a trauma occurs with physical sequels that alter the appearance that was had, changes the self-schematic and conceptual construction “explains Ayala. This produces sensations of strangeness, of not feeling oneself. You have to assimilate a new body that now has consequences and then you can achieve self-acceptance and self-worth again.
In the psychological aspect, the tattoo occupies an important role when it comes to healing, but not only because of the physical aspect. Ayala explains that “it is not the fact of the tattoo itself, but the meaning that the subject gives to it and that, in this way, generates that feeling of mental well-being.”
Many people tend to keep their scars as a life lesson, but others lose it due to the physical change that an injury implies. The tattoo seeks to give a physical and mental impulse to the person so that he returns to the path of knowing who he is and valuing how he looks.
People who have covered their wounds with tattoos feel confident in their decision. They recommend it to everyone who goes through similar situations.
“I know that there are more people like me who have wounds that have not allowed themselves to love their body as they should. That is why I highly recommend that you try a tattoo, it helps to hide that scar and highlight that part of the body with art”, assures Cañizares. “Now I like it more than before the accident and it’s all because of the work they did on me.”
This is a job with journalism students from USFQ.
Author:Andrés Mediavilla
