However, mental health tattoos can be a negative reminder and may not be right for everyone. If you’re unsure, we recommend you urge on the side of caution. Moving forward with your tattoo choice should only happen once it feels 100% right for you. Depression, to some extent, is common to almost all mental health disorders. This selection of tattoos can represent bleak and tired emotions or self-doubt.

Jamie has over 10 years experience as both a journalist and professional tattooist, working for some of the biggest brands in the UK. He has completed a BA sobriety tattoos in English, a NCTJ in Journalism and a BTEC level 4 in Art & Tattoo Design. Choosing to overcome addiction marks an important moment in a person’s life.

Simple Hand Tattoo Ideas To Inspire You…

This is a feminine ribbon tattoo that is explicitly done with flower engravings and shaded in yellow. The beautifully carved black sleek lines add to the depth of the tattoo and make it look stunning. This is not exactly an overdose awareness tattoo but it can be modified into one easily. This tattoo is done in the thigh region but it can be easily customized on the arms, knees and collar bone area. This is a decision you will have to live with for the rest of your life, so be sure it’s something you are 100% happy with. If you’re still not sure what design to choose, consider getting a temporary tattoo until you decide on a permanent design.

Some of the more touching semicolon tattoo designs are those that feature the semicolon at the end of a sentence to signify—as this design does—that your story isn’t over. Getting a tattoo is a significant decision that requires prior planning. Anyone can get a meaningful tattoo, but we should treat the process more delicately if we already have issues with our mental health.

Escaping the Noise: How a Mental Health Retreat Can Help

The process of choosing a design, collaborating with a skilled tattoo artist, and enduring the physical sensation of getting inked can be an empowering and therapeutic journey. Through this process, people often find solace, closure, and renewed strength. It gives them the opportunity to embrace their past experiences and turn them into symbols of triumph and resilience. For instance, the semicolon tattoo is a universal tattoo symbol that celebrates and helps normalize people with mental illness. When other people with mental illness see someone with a mental health tattoo, they can connect with others, find solidarity, and not feel alone in their struggles. Paulino says sometimes the therapy of tattoos isn’t exactly the design itself but the act of taking of your pain and turning it into something beautiful.

“People use a semicolon to send the message that their story is still being written.” Thus, these words can serve as a small reminder of a person’s commitment to their recovery journey, and help them move past particularly difficult periods. For many recovering addicts, being clean and sober is more than just being abstinent, it is a serious way of life. It is a way of viewing the world and thinking, feeling and acting. Going to meetings with friends, attending conventions, going on camping trips, the list goes on.

Choose Yourself

She shared the new tattoo on her instagram story after opening up about her recent relapse six years into sobriety and releasing a new single “Sober” about the experience. Usually something uplifting like “Faith” “Hope” “Breathe” “Free” “Serene” and so on. Unique Sobriety Tattoos for Guys will help you find the best tattoos for sobriety. You can find tattoo designs that are perfect for those who want to get the sober look but still express their uniqueness through tattoos. When getting a sobriety tattoo, it is crucial that you find a tattoo artist who is just as committed to your reason to get a tattoo as you are.

• Think of Shia Muslims and medieval saints flagellating themselves, Christians focusing on the agony of crucifixion, or tribal initiation rites.
• I’ve had these self-harm scars for years, and hated how they drew attention and identified me.
• This phrase comforts many as they experience different parts of life.
• Moving forward with your tattoo choice should only happen once it feels 100% right for you.
• For starters, many people may choose to get the exact time and date they began their sobriety permanently inked on their body.

People are becoming more and more comfortable with opening up about mental health struggles. Together, we’re creating a culture where others can share openly about their anxiety, depression, trauma, and grief while knowing people will accept them. Cross tattoos are fairly popular on their own, but when combined with the semicolon they take on a whole new meaning. In fact, if you already happen to have a cross tattoo and are living with depression, you could consider adding a semicolon to part of the design. Another fun way to dress up the semicolon tattoo would be to combine the dotted part of the semicolon with a set of cat whiskers, so that it looks like a cat’s face.

What is a Sobriety Tattoo?

My life is so full of love and joy now I don’t want to taint it with the bad.” — Kim M. “I used to scratch and just think horrible thoughts of dying constantly. No matter what happens, if I don’t love myself, I can’t love anyone else the way they need it.” — Keelya G. A cat tattoo is also a bit light-hearted, which could help to lift your spirits on the days when you are feeling down.

These are some of the major issues which need awareness and acceptance, and tattoos are just an artistic form of it. When choosing an artist to do your mental health tattoo, be sure to find someone who is reputable and has experience with Mental Health Awareness tattoos. You don’t want to end up with a botched mental health awareness tattoo that you regret for the rest of your life.