The “tattoo flu,” according to people who say they’ve experienced the phenomenon, is a malaise that sometimes afflicts tattoo recipients who get larger tattoos, or who sit for an especially lengthy tattoo sessions. It’s not an actual virus, nor any type of infection caused by the tattoo process, but rather the body’s immunological reaction to undergoing a traumatic event, according to experts.
“This absolutely happens,” Mary Lupo, M.D., a board-certified dermatologist and an adjunct faculty member at Tulane University, told Nexstar. “It’s an immune response, and I think it’s very dependent on the individual and their sensitivity. … Obviously, the bigger the tattoo, the greater the assault, and you’re probably more likely to get it on subsequent tattoos, because you’ve been sensitized by the first one.”
But Timothy Lebron, of Bodiesneedrest and the HERE tattoo parlour in Brooklyn, says he’s seen lots of first-timers come down with tattoo flu as well. “Plenty of people get hit with that foggy, feverish feeling after a tattoo,” he said. “Your immune system kicks in, inflammation rises, your stress hormones spike and then crash. … It’s like the day after a bad hangover.”
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Ink sucks!
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