So after my fifth treatment, I mentioned that I was going to try an experiment during my next treatment. The experiment would test the effectiveness of The Chiller at numbing my arm for the laser tattoo removal as a form of pain management, compared to a topical analgesic. The analgesic was Lidocaine, and let me tell you: it didn’t work. Not even a little.

Following doctor’s orders, I liberally applied the Lidocaine to half of my tattoo an hour before the laser treatment, then covered it with plastic wrap. Just before the treatment, the other half of my tattoo was treated with The Chiller. Then, my tattoo was carefully zapped with the laser.

OUCH.

Yeah. The half that had been Chilled was fine. The pain was still there, but far less intense than the half that had been treated with Lidocaine. Seriously. The pain was stinging, harsh, intense… and it didn’t get better, either. As I was drifting off to sleep that night, I realized I was really, really sore in the half of the tattoo that had been treated with the topical. The Chiller half wasn’t sore at all.

So if you’re wondering if The Chiller works better than topical creams at numbing the pain, the answer is a definitive YES. YES-YES-YES-YES-YES. Yes.

This is what my armband tattoo looks like just before laser treatment number six. It’s so faded, people all over metro Detroit are stopping and asking me if I’m in the middle of laser tattoo removal. To which I reply, “Why, yes. Yes I am.”

Anyway. Really faded. Only five treatments, and it’s this remarkably faded. I can’t wait to see it after the sixth treatment!

I forgot to mention something really, really important: why the Chiller is a big deal.

Remember, the Chiller is the machine that the laser tattoo removal doc uses to numb my skin before he zaps it with the laser to get rid of the tattoo. It’s a big deal, of course, because without the Chiller, I’m such a sissy, I might not be able to stand the pain of having the laser tattoo removal. While numbing my arm before my last treatment, the doctor casually mentioned that most laser tattoo removal places don’t have the Chiller.

WHAT?!?

How do they help their clients manage the pain then? Well, he said, the other places use a topical analgesic cream (like Lidocaine) to help with the pain… but it’s really more of a placebo effect, since (a) they start using the laser before the Lidocaine actually has a chance to start working and (b) the Lidocaine only numbs the top layers of skin, and doesn’t penetrate or numb the layers where the ink is.

So, for the sake of science, I’m going to be a little guinea pig and use the Lidocaine for the pain before my next treatment, rather than the Chiller. Just to see which works better. I’m going to apply it an hour before my treatment, so it has time to start working.

We’ll see how important that Chiller is. I can already tell you, though — the Chiller may be reason #975 to get laser tattoo removal in Metro Detroit at my place, and not somewhere else.

Where has the time gone? It’s already been six weeks since my last treatment? Indeed, it has, and I’m really excited now because it’s almost spring (well, maybe… this is Michigan after all, and spring can come any time between March and June and last anywhere from 3 hours to 60 days). Spring leads to summer (again, this is Michigan… so maybe not…), and summer means sun dresses and tank tops and exposed arms. This year, by the time it’s tank top and sun dress season, I might just be able to wear them without exposing ink. Bad ink. Ink I regret.

Here’s my tattoo, just before treatment five:

Hey, hold the comments about how unnaturally pale my skin is. I KNOW. It’s Michigan. It’s winter. It’s healthy not to use tanning beds, especially on skin that’s being treated with a LASER. So there.

Let me start by adding a quick reminder for those of you reading this article who may have forgotten, or who are too time-constrained to click back: this blog follows my progress as I have laser tattoo removal treatments done in Metro Detroit. I say this because a lot of the comments posted here have NOTHING to do with laser tattoo removal in Detroit. So if you, dear reader, happen to stumble across a comment that looks a bit… odd… you’ll know it’s not from ME. It’s likely spam, and not the kind that comes in the blue can.

Anyway. Back to the topic at hand. Which is, OH SNAP.

SNAP is the sound the laser makes when it comes into contact with ink that it’s “blasting.” The louder and more robust the SNAP, the better… so as time has gone on, and I’ve had more treatments, that SNAP is less pronounced because there’s less ink for the laser to “blast.” (Doesn’t that sound scientific, that word “blast?) This is the snapping sound you’ll hear in the LeBron James commercial, and pretty much anywhere else you see a laser tattoo removal treatment on TV.

I just thought I’d let you know what that SNAP is, in case you were wondering, because I sure did.

So I had my fourth laser tattoo removal treatment (right here in Metro Detroit) on January 12. Why didn’t I post an article about it then? I thought I did! But it didn’t post (click, Jen, click) so I’m posting it now.

Here’s my progress. This is BEFORE the fourth treatment… and yes, I know I’m terribly pale. It’s Detroit. It’s winter. We all look like this.

Amazing, no? I’m so incredibly excited about my next appointment, laser treatment #5, in just a couple of weeks. Will the tattoo be gone by spring? I can hope…!