Is permanent makeup application painful?

Permanent makeup, permanent cosmetics, micropigmentation, and “semi” permanent makeup are the same procedure: a cosmetic tattoo.

And, as such, a cosmetic tattoo utilizes needles to tattoo specialized pigments into the dermal layer of the skin.

There is some discomfort associated with permanent makeup but when performed by a proficient technician, the discomfort should be minimal. People are individual and unique and have different tolerance to discomfort.

Topical anesthetics are available for technicians and are very effective. Topical anesthetics used in permanent makeup are commonly formulated with lidocaine, tetracaine, benzociane and small amounts (in some) of epinephrine.

The most challenging procedure is the eyelids. The lids themselves are easy to numb, but the globe of the eye (eyeball) is directly under the area being worked, and it registers discomfort when it receives 'alert' signals from the brain. The brain doesn’t care much about the brows or lips, but it seems to become quite concerned when it thinks its eyes are being violated!

We humans didn’t get far from the cave by allowing things to hit us in the eyes.

Stronger topical anesthetics which might be safe for the brow and lip areas may be problematic to the eyes and may not be safe for use in an eyeliner procedure. Only formulas specifically manufactured for the eye area should be used.

The lips would certainly be the most painful if not for anesthetics, but topical anesthetics allow for a fairly comfortable lip procedure. The lips may be treated more generously with topical anesthetics than the eyes.

When topical anesthetics are applied to intact skin (before the first pass of the tattoo), the skin is at its most resistant to the anesthetics. Part of the skin's job is to form a barrier against anything on the ‘outside’. Consequently, the first pass of the tattoo after the removal of anesthetic is usually the most uncomfortable. Once the skin's barrier is broken, the following topical anesthetics will be met with much less resistance and will provide for a more comfortable procedure.