Should You Get a Tattoo While Pregnant?

One thing to consider when planning a tattoo during pregnancy is that your body undergoes a lot of quick and dramatic changes – both during and after the pregnancy.

Obviously, the skin on and around the stomach will stretch. Stretch marks might also form, which could affect where you’d like to have a tattoo. You’re also likely to experience some weight gain during pregnancy and then some weight loss sometime afterward.

All of these could affect the way your design looks. Depending on where you plan to get the tattoo (especially the stomach), it might be worth waiting until your body settles into its new normal shape before taking a trip to the studio.

There are also some undeniable risks to getting a tattoo while pregnant, and even when the adverse effects are rare, they can be serious.

Whether those risks are worth taking or not will be up to you. Some women will dodge getting tattooed while they’re pregnant. Others will weigh the risks and decide to go ahead with it anyway.

Reasons for Not Getting a Tattoo During Pregnancy

So what exactly are the risks and considerations you should keep in mind before making a decision about getting tattooed during your pregnancy?

Discomfort

While you’re pregnant, you might feel sore, aching, and uncomfortable even when sitting in a soft chair. Depending on the tattoo you want and its location, you might have to sit in an uncomfortable position for at least an hour while getting it done, and up to a whole day (or multiple days) depending on the size and detail of the tattoo.

If you’re finding it hard to tolerate sitting in one spot for an extended period of time, it’s best to reschedule your tattoo until after birth.

Risk of Infections

Tattooing involves creating small open wounds and contact with blood. That means there’s always a small risk of getting an infection, no matter how safe and clean the facility you use are, or how well you look after your tattoo while it heals.

Contracting HIV or Hepatitis B is not something you ever want.  However, when you’re pregnant, there are some added worries. You no longer only have to protect yourself but also must protect your unborn baby.

Although the risk is minimal, there is a small possibility that a Hepatitis infection will lead to pregnancy loss. Moreover, if it’s acquired in the last trimester, it increases the odds of preterm labor and serious birth defects.

Yet the bigger worry is what happens during the birth itself: mothers who contract Hepatitis B while pregnant, have a high probability (some studies place it at 90%) of passing the virus on to their newborn. In many cases, the baby develops a chronic infection from it, and about a quarter of them will develop serious liver problems once they reach adulthood.

Tattoo Ink Affecting the Baby

This is a concern that gets raised occasionally. There’s the fact that the tattooing process involves opening blood vessels with the needles, and consequently, it’s possible that some of the ink may make its way through the bloodstream and reach the baby.

This worry is compounded by the fact that many professional tattoo inks contain heavy metals. While they’re in quantities and concentrations that are safe for adults, they might have a detrimental effect on a developing fetus whose brain and organs are very susceptible to the deleterious effects of heavy metals.

Still, the truth is, no one really knows. There has been so little research done on this that the risks are only speculative; it isn’t ethical to do research studies on pregnant women.

Tattoo Ink Allergies

If you’ve never had a tattoo before, you might have an allergy to tattoo ink and not realize it.

If you’ve never had a tattoo before, you might have an allergy to tattoo ink and not realize it.

Like the ink affecting the fetus, it’s not clear whether there will be any pregnancy complications if you have an allergic reaction (beyond the reaction itself, that is). It’s a potential risk that’s worth considering before getting tattooed.

If this isn’t your first tattoo, you might still have an allergy to some tattoo inks. To be safe, you can get a tattoo from the same shop (if possible) and ask about the kinds of inks they used on you before to make sure your new tattoo is done with something you know your body can effectively tolerate.

Anesthetics

If you’re planning to get an epidural while giving birth, you might be worried that a tattoo on your lower back (where the epidural is inserted) will mean you have to go without it.

Thankfully, these worries are mostly unfounded. There’s no evidence of anesthesiologists refusing to give an epidural to someone because they have tattooed skin.

Things might be different, however, for a fresh tattoo. If your tattoo is still healing, some hospitals might be reluctant to give you an epidural. While planning your tattoo, call the hospital’s labor and delivery ward and ask whether it will be an issue.

Precautions if You Choose to Get Tattooed While Pregnant

Now, despite the risks, you might still choose to get tattooed while pregnant. There’s no judgment here – pregnancy means finding a balance between taking added precautions, while still living your life and expressing yourself. It’s up to every individual to decide when to get a tattoo – and deciding whether to do it while pregnant is no different.

It is important to realize that your impulsivity may harm your baby and the appearance of your tattoos after the pregnancy.  It is encouraged and highly recommended that you wait until after pregnancy and breastfeeding to get your tattoo.

If you do choose to get a tattoo while pregnant, there are a few things you can do to get it done safely and with added peace of mind.  You should also follow these guidelines if you are willing to wait.

Get Tattooed at a Regulated and Certified Tattoo Parlor

Make sure you’ve picked a good facility to get tattooed in.

The first thing to look for is the overall cleanliness of the studio. If it doesn’t look spotless when you walk in, it might not be the right place to get tattooed (especially when pregnant).

Look for a business license and any certifications that the tattoo parlor or the individual artists have. If the staff gets surly with you when you ask to see these, or are reluctant to show them, take your business elsewhere.

Make sure they have an autoclave on the premises. That’s the machine tattoo artists (and surgeons/dentists) use to sterilize their equipment. Every tattoo artist should also be following the typical safety and cleanliness protocols. If you notice anyone tattooing without gloves or appearing to reuse a needle (or any other disposable equipment), instead of getting a new one straight from the package, leave.

Also, be comfortable asking questions and raising concerns. A reputable tattoo studio will take pride in their safe and clean practices – not get defensive when queried about them.

Work with an Experienced Tattoo Artist

Not everyone who is working in a tattoo parlor is a licensed tattoo artist. Some of them might be aspiring tattoo artists, doing an apprenticeship under an experienced and licensed employee.

There are times when working with an apprentice is just fine – while you’re pregnant is probably not one of them.

An experienced tattoo artist will usually be more knowledgeable about the various risks and complications that could take place in a tattoo session, and they’re also more likely to know how to manage and deal with those complications safely.

In many states, tattoo artists will undergo regular training and recertification. In those places, working with a more experienced artist means working with someone who has more of that training under their belt.

Tell Your Tattoo Artist You’re Pregnant

You might think telling them about your personal life doesn’t matter, but informing the tattoo artist you’re pregnant alerts them to the fact that you’re at greater risk. Knowing that, they’re likely to be extra cautious and take additional precautions when preparing and handling their equipment. They’ll also likely be much more diligent in checking your comfort levels throughout the entire process.

Follow Aftercare Instructions Strictly

What happens in the tattoo shop is most important for your safety, but what happens afterward is critical, too.

After getting tattooed, your artist will give you some aftercare instructions. These are steps you need to take to help your tattoo heal properly and to prevent any infections. Follow these to the letter.

You’ll also probably want to purchase a good tattoo healing lotion to ensure the area remains supple and nourished.

The best tattoo lotion I’ve ever personally used is a vegan aftercare product called After Inked Tattoo Aftercare Lotion. This stuff works amazingly well during the healing process; not only by keeping your tattoo really well hydrated but also by soothing any annoying itching and irritation. When using it from the very start of the healing process, this lotion will help to decrease tattoo healing times and work towards eliminating any lingering dryness and scabbing. Click here to buy from Amazon.

If some of the instructions provided are optional, treat them as necessary. There’s no sense in cutting corners and increasing your risks.

Is It Okay to Get a Tattoo After Pregnancy?

Many people get tattoos to commemorate momentous events in their lives, and few events even come close to the significance of the birth of a child. Therefore, naturally, some new mothers wish to get new ink to mark the event and honor their child, and they might want to do it as soon as they can.

If you don’t want to get a tattoo while pregnant but also don’t want to wait too long before getting one, here’s what you need to keep in mind.

Breastfeeding Risks

There’s some risk from getting a tattoo if you’re a breastfeeding mom.

The ink itself is not an issue. No trace of it will make it to the breast milk, so your nursing baby will not be exposed to it.

Nevertheless, as mentioned above, there’s always some slight risk of a Hepatitis B or HIV infection while getting a tattoo. Fundamentally, there’s also the possibility of passing that infection to the baby through breast milk.

It’s an unlikely scenario. Not only is getting an infection from a well-cared-for tattoo rare but transmitting an infection through breastfeeding is also a small risk.

What’s more likely to happen, however, is transmission through your blood. Breastfeeding is often portrayed as easy and painless, but in reality, there are some challenges, and many women will experience cracking skin on and around the nipple as a result of breastfeeding.

Normally that’s a minor issue that’s treated by applying medicinal cream, but if you have a bloodborne infection, like Hepatitis B, there’s a possibility that the baby will contract it by ingesting some of the surrounding blood.

Again, this will be a personal decision. Yet the only way to be sure to avoid this risk is to wait until you’re no longer nursing before getting a tattoo.

Summary

There’s no hard-and-fast answer when it comes to deciding whether you should get a tattoo while pregnant, but there are risks worth considering, and waiting is generally recommended.

Bloodborne pathogens, especially Hepatitis B, are the biggest worry. Reputable tattoo studios take every reasonable precaution to prevent the spread of infection (some states even require tattoo artists to be screened for, and clear of Hepatitis B before receiving their license). Despite that, infection always remains a slight possibility.

If you choose to go through with getting a tattoo while pregnant, just be extra careful when choosing an artist, and follow your aftercare instructions to the letter.