Olivia Burke
A woman has told how she feared doctors would be 'forced to amputate her leg' when she contracted a serious infection after getting a 'cheap' home tattoo.
Samantha Lowen is urging people to only visit qualified professionals when they want some ink, as saving a few quid is 'not worth risking your life'.
The 21-year-old explained she had wanted to get a floral tattoo on her left hip and thigh for more than a year, hoping it would make her 'feel better' about her body.
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She arranged for one of her friends to do it for her last month, but the pal ended up sending another artist to do it in her place - who she promised was 'good' - after she let Samantha down on the day.
But the young woman has been left wishing she waited to book in with a body art specialist at an actual tattoo shop, as the £150 design left her in 'agonising' pain.
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Samantha claims the bloke who tattooed her bizarrely used 'washing up liquid' to clean her skin before 'dragging' the needle and pressing hard into her flesh as he worked closer to her hip bone.
The young woman, from Rayne, Essex, said: "He did everything as normal, but he was using this green soap that was just washing-up liquid, which he shouldn't have used.
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"When he started it was all fine, I was relaxed, but when he was coming more towards my hip bone he seemed to go a lot harder and deeper, dragging the needle.
"It caused me to scream - and normally, I'm really good with tattoos and pain. I nearly passed out when he was having it done. It was burning and it felt like I was having acid thrown over my skin."
Samantha took a brief break from the tattooing session to 'calm down' and says she then 'had to convince' the artist to complete the design because she was so worked up.
She claims that after he finished the floral inking, he 'didn't cover' it or explain the aftercare process to her - however, she was thankfully aware of this already having previously got three other tattoos.
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Less than 48 hours after the home inking, Samantha woke up in the middle of the night in horrific pain.
"I tried sitting up and I couldn't sit on my left bum cheek, I tried standing up and couldn't even stand straight," she explained. "I put cream on it and the pain became worse, I was shaking and crying and I couldn't even go near the tattoo.
"The ink was incoming out of my tattoo, the green and yellow stuff around it is where it's been infected. I couldn't walk, any pressure on my leg was causing so much pain in my hip."
She took herself to Basildon University Hospital where medics informed her that she had a bacterial infection called cellulitis - which, if left untreated, can lead to sepsis or gangrene.
The NHS explains that this is skin infection which leaves the affected area painful, hot, swollen and sometimes even blistered. You may also feel unwell and have flu-like symptoms, with swollen, painful glands.
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Cellulitis is usually caused by a bacterial infection which can infect the deeper layers of your skin if it's cracked and dry. Sometimes the break in the skin is too small to notice.
According to experts at Cleveland Clinic, you can get an infection after a tattoo if the skin hasn't been cleaned correctly, if non-sterile needles are used and if the correct sterilisation processes aren't followed.
There's still a risk of becoming unwell post-inking even if you go to a professional, however, it's somewhat heightened if you're doing it at home.
You should get checked out if you notice any bumps or nodules on your skin, or experience any redness or swelling.
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The usual course of treatment for cellulitis is antibiotics, which were administered to Samantha at the hospital - but she still feared she might lose her leg.
"I was very scared they would cut my leg off, it was terrifying," she continued. "Another tattoo artist commented on my post saying it could affect my walking for life.
"The pain has gone down but I'm still struggling to walk. It feels like the ink is in my bone because of how my hip bone hurts."
She is set to undergo a blood test to determine if the infection has spread to other parts of her body.
Samantha claims she asked for a refund but was refused one. The tattoo artist has been contacted for comment and failed to respond.
Now, she is urging others to take heed of her health scare and hang on until they can afford to visit a verified tattooist rather than paying for a cheap one.
Samantha added: "I don't have much money and I know people will go for cheap tattoos so I just want to say, please wait and go to the shop - it's not worth risking your life for a tattoo.
"I've got a lot of insecurities about my body and I thought the tattoo would make me feel better. Now it's put my mental health back down, I can't physically look at it.
"I just went with it and didn't do any research, I trusted my friend to tell me what to do. I really wanted the tattoo and have been waiting for over a year, so I got impatient and wanted to do it.
"I have three other tattoos done in a shop and none of them turned out like this. I'll never do it again."