I have a thing about tattoos, especially original ones that are unique to the person sporting them. The idea that a person can alter the skin they are in and make something new our of their own body is really quite incredible. I have one tattoo that I got after the age of 30 and I do not regret it for a second.

That said, many other people do. My husband and I got ours together after talking about it for years. We designed it ourselves. It's our initials split in half so that we each have a tribal design that means nothing unless we are together. Immediately after we got it on our seventh wedding anniversary, everyone asked us if we would hate it in our 80s.

My answer: Hell no. But there are those who do regret their tats. But they shouldn't. Here are 5 reasons not to regret that tattoo.

  • It once meant something: I've heard tattoos described as a "permanent reminder of a temporary feeling" and I think that is true. Even if that yin yang that made you feel “whole” at 18 is now totally silly when you are 30, you can look at it and remember what it felt like to be 18 and carefree and full of the feeling that a ubiquitous symbol could mean SO MUCH.
  • They keep you young: As long as you have tattoos, no matter how buttoned up you have become, you can always say, “I used to be a rock star.”
  • They can make you laugh: Keep a sense of humor about yourself always. Tattoos help you do that. You can’t take yourself too seriously with Wile E. Coyote on your forearm.
  • They help you bond: If someone else has a tattoo they also “regret,” you can commiserate and laugh about the follies of youth. Together.
  • Regrets are pointless: The fact is, life is short. “Permanence” is really impermanent and all kinds of other deep, deep stuff. Life moves fast and your tattoos mark a time when you had a different mind set. Embrace that.

Obviously, the woman with the star tattoos on her face may have some regrets, but overall, life shouldn't be full of regrets. We should appreciate our youthful decisions for what they were. Even if they are more or less “permanent.”

Do you regret your tattoo?