The concept of getting a tattoo is immensely personal, and one cannot argue about its reasoning because getting a tattoo is all about liberty and choice. Lately, oral tattoos have been raising many eyebrows and if you don't have any tattoos and planning on having your first tattoo in your mouth, you should still re-consider it. You must brace yourself for the pain that would knock hard.

Before getting a one, you must do a good research about the health risks of an oral tattoo that are similar to an oral piercing and all funnel down to the presence of plenty of bacteria in the mouth. It is also important to know what preparations are required to get a tattoo.

Getting an oral tattoo carries the same processes like researching on tattoo designs, research on the tattoo artist, getting a day off and keeping yourself hydrated, and foremost is the tattoo artist must carry an experience.

Like with any tattoo you're planning to get, you want to research your artist and make sure he or she has done an oral tattoo before. Getting an oral tattoo is tricky, especially when we are considering one on the gums since the canvas area is small and for the fact, it is your gum, which is a skin membrane over your bone.

Inside Lip:

Getting a tattoo inside the lips is possible and is less painful but on the contrary, it is very uncomfortable. You will be expected to pull your lips down for the tattoo artist to let him draw, a lot of drooling involves in the process.

Gums:

For gums, consider something small in sizes like a dot or a star or some barbwire kind of design. Try to avoid words as inside the lip the area is small and sensitive.

Upper Inside Lip:

This side of the skin is again not easy to access and both the artist and bearer find it difficult to get the job done. The pain factor remains the same as the lower lip but keep in mind that every individual has a different tolerance level.

Tongue:

Undoubtedly it is the trickiest one since you will be sticking your tongue out for a period of time, it will uncomfortable and if you have tried tongue piercing and did not like it, this might be worse then.

External Oral Tattoos:

This is the easiest tattooing process, mainly on lips on the outer side. It is easy to access and thus can be attained pain free too. You can consider a numbing cream like  NumbSkin Topical Anesthetic Cream for the process. It is very easy to find as you do not need a prescription from a doctor to buy it, it is easily available OTC at any drug store. Its application will numb the skin and you will be able to bear the process better. Cautionary warning, if you don't like a dentist then this kind of tattoos is not for you.

There is not much that can be done to prepare for an oral tattoo. All you can do is get a proper sleep, get a proper diet and brushing teeth and keeping it bacteria free as much possible as you can solve the problem, to an extent. Don't smoke before or drink alcohol, since the alcohol will thin your blood and the smoking delay healing.

If you smoke regularly, then this will be a hard time as you will not be able to smoke for at least a week or two. You will not be allowed to drink alcohol for the next 48 hours and you must make sure to rinse after every meal and brushing the teeth softly. After getting a tattoo, the first two days you must skip flossing and also stay away from acidic juices like orange and lemon. They will cause an irritation.

Do keep a note on your tattoo as the tongue tattoo tends to scab and fade away, just like the lip tattoos. However, it also depends on the artist and how deep he pierced the needle inside.

The risk of infection is on the higher side if compared to the other parts of the body as the mouth is filled with bacteria. If you get an infection, a bad breath, white spots with a red area around are the symptoms you would witness. Few pus bubbles and bleeding gums can occur too.