Living with a chronic illness often closes you off from regular life experiences. You have to carefully plan around your illness and its symptoms to ensure you have the energy, you’re not going to be in too much pain, that you’re not going to trigger a flare-up, etc. It’s exhausting work, and you’re already exhausted to begin with.

That means those with chronic illnesses often miss out. Activities like doing things with friends, being available and present for your family, and even just having a good day at work are incredibly tricky.

Even when it comes to making decisions about our bodies, the choices we want to make can be rather heavily questioned.

And if you’ve ever told someone you’d love to get a tattoo or piercing before, and they’re responded with ‘Are you sure you can do that?’, this is the post for you.

The Short Answer? Yes, But it Depends

99% of the time, the answer to the question above is yes. Plain and simple, most people are able to get a tattoo or piercing if they want one.

But when you’re living with a chronic illness, this decision may come with a few caveats.

For example, you may not be able to get it in the place you were originally thinking of. Say you have a type of arthritis in your left knee; if you wanted to get this spot inked up, you’d likely have to find another placement.

Similarly, if you’re in the middle of an active flare-up, you’re going to need to rebook your appointment for when the reaction has settled down and you’re feeling better.

Talk to Your Doctor

If you’re concerned that the application of a tattoo or piercing may have negative effects, talk to your doctor about it. They can help you to weigh up the decision, and they may highlight a detail about your health that you’d need to take into account.

They may even just tell you it’s perfectly fine and you should have no worries. But either way, you’ll want to have a little chat and see what a medical professional has to say. It’s still your choice, but their advice can be helpful.

Make Your Artist Aware

If you’ve already found a tattoo artist or piercer you’re happy to work with, you’ll want to chat with them about your health. This ensures they’re fully in the loop about your specific needs, and they’re likely to have some hands-on advice you can follow.

Indeed, when they give you the all you need to know info about nose piercings, they’ll be able to tailor their guidelines for preparation and aftercare with your illness in mind. You can also trust this advice to help you heal and get the final result you want, without worrying if your illness might get in the way.

Long story short, you probably can get a tattoo or piercing if you’re chronically ill. You’ll just need to put some more research in.