Artists make free tattoos for people with allergies and chronic illnesses so they are better served

Tattoos have existed for thousands of years and, even if they were not so well regarded before, today they are accepted as a form of human and artistic expression. Some prefer to tattoo messages, others, drawings and there are even those who register the image of someone they love on their body. However, some ink professionals have taken this practice further. They offered to tattoo the chronically ill free of charge so that, in an emergency, the paramedics would know properly how to care for them, even if the patient cannot communicate with them.

O incredible.club discovered the tattoo centers that carry out these messages and share a bonus of professionals who have carried out similar actions.

That year, grew up in the United States to popularity of tattoos with information about chronic diseases or allergies. Three years later, in 2015, the “Semicolon” ​​campaign became known, in which people tattooed themselves with a semicolon (;), warning about some emotional disorder.

“Drug allergy”

A fairly common system of to introduce specific health information bracelets or necklaces. But unfortunately these objects can be lost or unusable.

Some messages inform, for example, that tattooed people are allergic to penicillin or make it clear that they do not want to receive cardiopulmonary resuscitation with the tattoo “Do not resuscitate”, DNR (Do not resuscitate). This last message has been generating several problems and questions within the emergency rooms of hospitals.

In Argentina, there are two studios dedicated to tattooing people with certain diseases, completely free of charge. They are Sebas Tatuajes and SkinTattoo ST, which on their own initiative are going in the same direction. They thus contribute to people receiving the most appropriate medical assistance in an emergency. Let’s find out more about them…

Sebastián Gallardo is from Mendoza and is known because, in 2017, he held a campaign to make free tattoos for women who have suffered gender violence and want to hide the marks they had left. Now Gallardo is helping people with illnesses or allergies. The idea is that informative tattoos are in very visible places on the body.

Gallardo wants his proposal to spread throughout Argentina and that many colleagues replicate it: “The idea is that other tattooists join the initiative. I get two free tattoos a month, and the more we go, the better, ”she said in an interview.

For its part, Skintattoo-ST is from San Rafael and its artists also understand the importance of this type of work. “The best way to start would be with people who have some kind of illness or allergy”, says the head of the studio, who also does free tattoos. “There are cases in which cardiorespiratory resuscitation cannot be performed or even particularities involving heart problems. Therefore, it is important that this information is visible in strategic places, such as the chest”, emphasize the Skintattoo-ST tattooists.

Argentina is not the only country where this practice is adopted. Here, in Brazil, it has existed since 2017, even though it is still little known. One of the reference artists is Nathalia Stern, from Rio de Janeiro. The most surprising case for her was the one linked to a condition known as situs inversus totalis🇧🇷 “It’s a situation where all the person’s organs are on the opposite side. For example, the heart is on the right side, instead of being on the left side, ”he commented.

New Zealand tattoo artist Benjamin Lloyd posted a photo of his friend’s son with a non-permanent tattoo on his arm that he did himself. At that moment, he thought about how he could make other children live the experience and have moments of happiness. So he put up a post on Facebook saying, “if I get 50 likes I’ll go to Starship hospital and tattoo all the kids.” The children’s hospital is dedicated to chronic diseases. Lloyd’s post surpassed the goal, getting 400k likes.

Vinnie is a 52-year-old tattoo artist who, for 15 years, has been drawing on 3D the areolas of women who have suffered from breast cancer or who have had a preventive mastectomy. The artist receives clients from all over the world, who leave satisfied because they will no longer see themselves mutilated in front of the mirror. About this, Myers says: “The change is tremendous. They enter with a look of incompleteness and leave the studio feeling whole. Without a doubt, what they tell me the most is that I made them feel complete.”

What did you think of the work of the tattoo artists? Do you have any tattoos that indicate you suffer from an illness or did you get tattooed to hide a mark? Tell us in the comments!