Getting a tattoo is never painless. Does not matter what method or by which artist you get your tattoo, you will feel a certain amount of pain as the tattoo needle pokes at your skin a few hundred times. That said, there are a few factors that can affect how much pain you feel. Some of these factors are tattoo size, your pain tolerance level, placement of the tattoo, etc. Now, you may wonder “Do shin tattoos hurt?”
People may choose to get tattoos on their neck, hand, rib, shin, and ankle, and the pain can be more or less, depending on the placement of the tattoo. To understand why it is more painful to get tattoos on some body parts and if shin tattoos hurt more or less first you need to know the details of the tattooing procedure and the shin area. I elaborated on the matter below.
Key Takeaways
- The shin area or any area that has less fat, less muscle, and the skin is closer to the bone hurts more when getting a tattoo.
- We have a bunch of nerve ending around the shin which increases the pain.
- Because of the lack of padding in the shin area, tattoo needle poking can feel like it is poking directly at your bone and cause a rattling feeling.
- Choosing an extensive and complex tattoo design for shin will hurt more.
- Smaller designs, numbing agents, plenty of sleep, healthy snacks, etc can reduce the level of pain you feel.
Location of The Shin and More
My apologies for bringing a little bit of biology lesson here. But it is essential to know about the shin and its location before we get into the answering portion. Who knows, maybe after learning about the shin area you may end up changing your decision about getting a shin tattoo!
The shin is the front part of your leg which is located under the knee and above the ankle. Shin has two long bones which are the fibula and the tibia. The tibia bone is much larger than the fibula bone. These two long bones connect your knee and ankle. Even though they connect your knee and ankle, they are not connected to each other. To be precise this tibia bone is called the shin bone.
You may have noticed many athletes wear protective gear around their shins. Why is that? It is to protect the shin area as it is quite sensitive. Shin does not have a thick layer of fat or muscle to protect against injury. That is why athletes take extra precautions to protect this area. If you take a look at your shin and touch it, you will understand what I meant.
Tattooing Procedure
Tattoo artists usually use a tattoo machine that has a needle that works similarly to a sewing machine. The needle pokes your skin around 60 times per minute and inserts ink deep into the dermis layer of your skin. It may take a few hundred or even thousand of needle poking to make a tattoo.
Now that you know the procedure of getting a tattoo, you can tell it won’t be painless. Because getting poked by a needle multiple times that goes deep into the dermis layer which is the second layer of your skin, cannot be painless at all. But if you get a small tattoo on a body part where you got a decent amount of fat and muscle the pain will be less. Likewise, if you choose a big tattoo and a body part that is next to no body fat or muscle then the pain will be much more.
Do Shin Tattoos Hurt?
Getting any sort of tattoo will hurt. It will be even more painful if you get tattooed on an area that is right above your bone. So when you get a shin tattoo it would definitely hurt more.
The reason behind shin tattoos hurting more than other body parts is, naturally there is not much fat or muscle on the shin. You could say it lakes the cushion to absorb the pain caused by a tattoo needle. To make matter worse, there is a bunch of nerves around the area. When the tattoo needle pokes at the shin area, the lacking of a protective layer makes the pain almost unbearable. You may feel your whole body is in pain when tattoo needles hit the nerve on the shin.
Studies show that females have a more dense nerve system and they feel more pain than men when hurt. So, a woman would feel more pain getting a shin tattoo than a man. But the difference shouldn’t be that big as men also have dense nerve systems around the shin area.
Apart from the skull or neck, the shin is considered the worst place to get a tattoo because of the severe pain it causes during the tattooing procedure. If you see people with shin tattoos you can bet they have commendable patience and pain tolerance.
Reasons why shin tattoos hurt more:
- Lack of fat
- Lack of muscle
- Rattling feeling
- Complexity of the design
- Extensive design
- Method of tattooing
- Dense nerves
1. Lack of fat
I mentioned earlier that tattoos on the area above the bones hurt more. Because such areas have less or no fat. Because of a lack of fat or padding when a tattoo needle pokes deep into your screen, it will surely poke at multiple nerves. Which increases the level of pain you suppose to feel compared to tattooing on other body parts. Apart from nerves, the periosteum is another cause of pain. Periosteum is basically a fibrous tissue layer that covers the bone. Lacking fat makes it easier for the tattoo needle to hurt this layer and cause pain.
Remember, the fatter a body art is, the less it would hurt when you get a tattoo there.
2. Lack of muscle
Muscle is not as effective as fat when it comes to padding. But hey, nothing is better than something right? So even if a body part does not have much fat, if it has plenty of muscles, those muscles would reduce the pain by shielding the sensitive nerves on the area from needle poking.
Unfortunately, shin not only lacks fat but also muscles. A lack of muscles increases the pain level further as the periosteum in the shin is basically without any protection from the intrusion of needle poking action. Any nerve endings around the shin become more sensitive to pain.
There are exercises you can do to increase muscle on the shin, but that small amount of muscle will hardly reduce any pain.
3. Rattling feeling
The lack of any protective padding on the shin makes it similar to getting a tattoo directly onto your bones. When the tattoo needle pokes deep into your skin around 60 times per minute, it creates a very weird and unique sensation. You may feel a vibration on the shin bone. You could compare the feeling to rattling. This rattling feeling is not only uncomfortable but at times it causes unbearable pain.
Over the years of tattooing, I have had many clients who would stop during a shin tattooing with watery eyes because of the severe pain and rattling feeling. Even if you can bear the rattling feeling, by the end of the procedure you will be physically and mentally exhausted.
4. Complexity of the design
Whenever I get a client who wants a shin tattoo, the majority of the time they request a design that requires more time and more needle poking.
You may know already that a complex tattoo design hurts more than a simple design as it takes more time to do. So when you go for a complex on your shin of course it would hurt more.
5. Extensive design
Honestly, I don’t get why most people go for an extensive design for their shin. Any big tattoo would hurt more and when you go for a big tattoo on a sensitive area such as the shin, it would hurt even more.
One of the reasoning could be for getting an extensive design is that shin is a big area. The shin bone is a very large bone, it is the second-largest bone in our body. So people may go for an extensive design to cover the big area. But in my opinion, a little tattoo can work fine in your shin, no need to go for a big tattoo for a big body part.
6. Method of tattooing
Tattooing methods such as puncturing or cutting the skin can cause more pain during the procedure. Even though these are ancient methods, still some artists practice them and many clients want to feel how people back in the day felt getting a tattoo. There is no harm in the curiosity but when you chose shin as the area to try out these ancient methods then the unbearable pain is unavoidable.
I suggest you go for the modern method which is piercing, as it is less painful.
7. Dense nerves
The sciatic nerve is located around your lower body and performs many functions and one of them is sensitivity. So naturally, you will have a bunch of nerve ending around the shin area. When you get hurt around the shin, you will feel extreme pain and sometimes the pain may travel your whole body. The same happens when you try to get a tattoo around that area. A bunch of nerve ending around the shin which do not have any padding will hurt like hell when the tattoo needle pokes at them multiple times.
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Ways to Make Shin Tattoo Hurt Less
A Shin tattoo will hurt more than getting a tattoo on a body part that has a decent amount of fat and muscle. But the good news is there are a few things you can do to reduce the pain while getting a shin tattoo.
- Smaller design
- Simple design
- Applying numbing
- No Alcohol
- Stomach full
- Plenty of sleep
- Self distracted
- Gentle tattoo artist
1. Smaller design
Just because shin is a big area that does not mean the design has to be big too.
A smaller design can work just fine for your shine. All you need to do is talk with your tattoo artist can go through all the small shin tattoo design ideas to pick the best one that suits you.
2. Simple design
Complexity is not always cool. The simple tattoo has its own beauty and standard. And when it comes to tattooing the shin area, you should definitely go for a simple design rather than going for a complex design that requires a lot of work. Remember the less time it takes to make your shin tattoo, the less it will hurt.
3. Applying numbing agent
Numbing sprays and creams are being used more and more nowadays. I reckoned using numbing spray or cream before tattooing as it reduces the amount of pain you would feel without applying the agent. I personally use the numbing spray whenever I work on a tattoo around the neck, skull, or shin. Trust me nobody will call you a baby for applying numbing agent before getting a tattoo, especially if it is on your shin.That said, not all tattoo artist uses or agrees to use such anesthetics. So choose a tattoo artist who would use it.
4. No Alcohol Before the Procedure
Now that I have mentioned numbing agents, some of you may consider drinking alcohol to numb the pain further. Well, you can’t be any further from the truth.
Drinking alcohol will do the opposite of what you intend it to do. Alcohol thins your blood and causes more pain and excessive bleeding during the tattooing procedure.
5. Keep your stomach full
Getting a shin tattoo is exhausting mentally and physically. You will need plenty of energy to go through the procedure. So make sure you eat something healthy before getting the tattoo.
An empty stomach will make you irritated and you will feel more discomfort during your tattoo session.
6. Plenty of sleep
Trust me, people can handle pain much better if they get at least an 8-hour sleep beforehand. So make sure you get plenty of sleep before your tattoo session.
7. Keep your self distracted
Focusing on the pain will only make the matter worse. So try to keep yourself distracted from the fact that you’re going through a shin tattoo session.
You can play games, listen to your favorite music, and if the studio allows you to bring a partner you can chat with them to distract yourself.
8. Choosing a gentle tattoo artist
Not all licensed tattoo artists are the same. Each one of them has unique characteristics. Some may be a bit rough and some may be a bit more on the gentle side. Do your research and choose a tattoo artist that is known to be gentle by their clients. A gentle artist will go above and beyond to ensure you feel less pain during the procedure.
Exactly How Bad a Shin Tattoo Pain Can Be?
If you never got a tattoo on a place like a neck, skull, or ribs it is a bit difficult to explain. Any body part where the bone is right under your skin with next to no padding of fat and muscle will hurt like hell. So yea, you can expect excruciating or unbearable pain when getting a tattoo on your shin.
Many clients faint during the procedure. If you feel uncomfortable don’t be shy to let your tattoo artist know. You can take a break, eat a little snack, take your mind off the pain, and get back to it again.
Time It Takes To Heal Shin Tattoo
Tattoo healing takes time, and when it comes to the healing of shin tattoos it will take more time. To heal the first layer of the skin on the shin area may take 14-21 days. You cannot stop the aftercare routine after the 21-day mark or after the healing of the first layer of the skin.
The second layer or dermis layer of your shin can take up to 6 months to heal completely. I know it’s a long process but there is no shortcut when it comes to healing.
FAQs
Why does my shin tattoo hurt to walk?
It may hurt because it is not fully healed yet. Let the wound time to heal and the pain will go away on its own. If it stays longer than 21 days go see a doctor.
Apart from the shin what other body part hurts more?
Apart from the shin area, anybody part that has less fat and is closer to the skin will hurt more. Such as the neck, skull, and rib.
Final Thoughts
If you are thinking to get a shin tattoo you are a brave one! As shin is one of the worst places you can get a tattoo considering the amount of pain it causes. The pain does not stay limited to the shin; it can travel your whole body. The unbearable pain and mental and physical exhaustion can cause you to stop in the middle of your session and make you think twice if you still want to go through the session or not.
I am not discouraging you from getting a shin tattoo. Just trying to tell how beforehand how it would be. You can follow the steps I have mentioned above to reduce the pain when you get a shin tattoo. Hope this piece was a bit helpful to you, good luck!
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