ya,30x20cm is a fairly small tattoo,no big deal,

anyway,
1)pre-hydrate the night before,
2)get a good night’s sleep the night before
3)eat a good healthy meal right before that tattoo session
4)arrive 100% sober
5)don’t overthink it.
6)bring some sugary candy to munch on during the tattoo(I like a mix of skittles & M&M’s)and bring a couple bottles of cold water.
7)don’t take any pain relievers ,just relax & deal with it,embrace the pain,enjoy the experience ,put yourself in the right mental place.

that’s how to deal with the pain

dude, its like walking into a room full of adhd kids and placing a big red button in the middle and telling them not to push it… you had to expect it. this is a great forum, and the best you will find for tattoo enthusiats. but your question is a bit silly. No one here will advocate taking medication to get through a tattoo sitting…

you have been given some great points above to help make your experience more comfortable, i would recommend taking them. if you really struggle look into numbing cream but dont take pills! a tattoo that small in that area will take all of 20 minutes. yes the ribs suck. I myself have script on the right side of my ribs, but i also have a 5 hour underboob tattoo that goes on to my sternum and i slept through half and chatted away for the other half. You need to distract your mind with chatter and controlled breathing rather than looking to narcotics.#

Tattoos hurt.
It’s what makes them worth having.

And no on in life worth having around will ever just tell you what you want to hear.

I haven’t found anything to make the pain more bearable, I have gotten a tattoo while on a script of hydro condone 10mg and it didn’t effect the pain. The best thing to do would to be get a good nights sleep, and a benzo or hypnotic will put you at ease and the pain shouldn’t feel as intense.

I cant stand the pain of a tattoo. I’m probably one of the worst at handling the pain. All I know is the my artists will spray Bactine on the freshly opened skin and it helps take away the edge and keeps the redness down. I’m pretty sure she got the idea from someone that does a cover up show on TV. I don’t recall the details. Either way I’m always relieved when she uses it. Granted its only temporary and doesn’t numb you but I still feel it helps me move forward.

If you are getting your ribs done…..well mine sucked. I didn’t even finish one of the pieces. I just never went back lol. It was that painful.

I’ve never tried this but I keep hearing about HUSH anesthetic – Tattoo Numbing Gel or Crème. Ive had friends say it helped a lot for the first few hours but then wore off. Others said it didn’t help at all. Everyone is different. Hush also makes a spray you can use during the tattoo once the skin is broken. Same concept as the Bactine but Hush makes a potion specifically for this.

At the end of the day its going to be painful. I wouldn’t take any pills though. Id be more worried about he following two weeks while you heal. That will be annoying!

you should also remember that rubbing crap into your skin right where you’re about to be tattooed could also have a negative effect on how well your tattoo takes and heals. My advice is just don’t fuck with it and learn to meditate.