Personal trainer, Otis, looks back at his journey through the army and how it inspired a tattoo that he feels no longer served him - until now.
Before I joined the army, I wasn’t involved in anything. I was 19 and barely had a job. My relationship with my family was falling apart because I was always in trouble.
When I joined the army, I wanted to come across as more masculine. Deep down I had a feeling that I needed to fit in with this new group. At the time, I looked at all these men that were covered in tattoos and thought, ‘I need to be like this. I need to make sure I fit in.’ So I got a tribal-inspired tattoo. It was something that I was sketching and doodling. From there, that was it. I went down and got it done.
“My tattoo is almost gone. I can’t describe the feeling of being so self-conscious about something and being able to embark on a process and to have it eradicated.”
I disliked it almost straight away. It didn’t mean anything to me. In a way, it sort of goes to show maybe how immature I was. At the beginning my tattoo was actually tiny, but by the time I had it done it grew bigger and bigger. I went on to personal training and I learned about exercising. It started a new passion. I even got myself to a point where I could look at myself and say that I was really happy with the way that I look. And the feeling that a person gets from that is actually life-changing. That feeling came from how much happier I was in myself, which fuelled my self-esteem and my confidence.
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That’s when I decided to get my tattoo removed. It just doesn't mean anything to me; it’s a symbol of the time where I would do things out of impulse. Now I am more forward thinking. Having my tattoo almost gone is awesome. I can’t describe the feeling of being so self-conscious about something and being able to embark on a process and to have it eradicated. It’s like a breath of fresh air—really, really exciting to me.
The biggest factor for me in choosing NAAMA was the effectiveness. I had another tattoo on my back removed previously somewhere else, and I had confidence that NAAMA’s technology is better. The technology I tried before was quite painful, whereas NAAMA’s technology is a lot quicker and you can have more treatments in a shorter amount of time. That’s a big one for me because the tattoo that I had removed before needed four or five treatments on it and it took a couple of years. And I had to wait eight to 10 weeks in between these treatments. With NAAMA, I can have four or five treatments in a couple of months.
The experience I’ve had with NAAMA is like one in a million. When I’d come in, I always felt like I was being welcomed by friends. Everyone is so friendly so it doesn't seem like it’s going to be this painful process. So when I attended the sessions, I looked forward to it.
My ambition moving forward is to start living my life the way I wanted to live. I'm focusing on being as successful as possible to allow me to make the memories that I want to make. Removing this tattoo with NAAMA helped me in that way. It definitely was a positive experience.
Otis' progress
Before treatment
Otis' tribal tattoo is large and dense. There's a lot of work to be done.
Early into treatment
Large ink particles begin to break down and the tattoo starts to fade.
After several sessions
The best removals rely on a healthy, well-functioning immune system.
Most recently
Otis' tattoo continues to fade and clear from the skin.
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