Can You Drink Alcohol Before and After a Tattoo Session?
Article contents:
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Can you drink alcohol before and after a tattoo session?
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After the session: when is it okay to “celebrate” a new tattoo?
Getting a tattoo is a form of stress for the body — both physical and psychological. Alcohol is often used to dull pain or reduce psychological tension. However, many tattoo artists are strongly against drinking alcohol both before getting a tattoo and during the healing process.
In this article, we look at whether alcohol can really be used as a “pain reliever” before a session and whether it’s a good idea to celebrate a new tattoo at a bar immediately after.
Before the session: when is it okay to drink alcohol before visiting a tattoo artist?
First, let’s look at why drinking alcohol before a tattoo session is a bad idea.
Firstly, drinking alcohol is a stressor for the body, just like the tattooing process itself. Any beer, wine, whiskey, or other alcoholic drink is perceived by the body as a toxin that needs to be eliminated as quickly as possible. The body’s reaction can be unpredictable, and excessive sweating or headaches are some of the mildest possible effects. This impacts your overall condition during the session, and instead of feeling relaxed, you are more likely to feel even more tense.
Secondly, alcohol temporarily thins the blood and increases blood pressure. This is what tattoo artists warn clients about most often — and for good reason. Thinner blood affects pigment consistency and retention, increases bleeding, reduces visibility of the tattoo during the process, and forces the artist to constantly wipe away excess blood. All of this makes the session longer and more uncomfortable for both the artist and the client, and the final result may be of lower quality and require future touch-ups.
Thirdly, not every tattoo artist will agree to work with a client who has consumed alcohol. This is due to the higher risk of poor results, the smell of alcohol, and the potentially uncomfortable atmosphere during the session.
Therefore, our verdict is simple: drinking alcohol before a tattoo session is done entirely at your own risk. Even if it seems like the alcohol has worn off and the artist agrees to proceed, there is no guarantee that alcohol is no longer present in your bloodstream or that it will not affect the tattoo.
After the session: when can you “celebrate” a new tattoo?
Of course, getting a new tattoo — especially your first one — often makes you want to celebrate with friends. However, we strongly recommend postponing any celebration until the tattoo has fully healed.
Drinking alcohol before that point is a real gamble, and the chances of “winning” (meaning proper healing) are quite low.
Firstly, while eliminating alcohol from the bloodstream, the body dehydrates the skin, and dry skin heals worse.
Secondly, lymph production increases: plasma and fluid will seep more than necessary and wash out more pigment.
Thirdly, alcohol suppresses the immune system, increasing the risk of inflammation caused by bacteria or infection entering the damaged skin.
All of this can result in uneven healing, blurred lines, and in some cases even scarring.
Conclusion
The decision to drink or not drink alcohol before and after a tattoo session is a personal one. However, it is important to remember that you are the one who will wear the tattoo, and the responsibility for its healing lies entirely with you.
To avoid disappointment caused by poor healing and to prevent the need for long correction sessions or even tattoo removal, we strongly recommend avoiding alcohol.
Skipping alcohol is a temporary measure — a high-quality tattoo is something you will enjoy for many years.