Eric Rogers*

Professor of Psychology, Benedict College, Columbia

*Corresponding Author: Rogers, Professor of Psychology, Benedict College, Columbia.

Received: February 17, 2025; Published: May 19, 2025

Abstract

Research between grief, trauma and tattoos and piercings was explored and examined to understand and critique any possible relationship between tattoos and piercings amidst grief and trauma as means of coping mechanisms for healing, hope and help among individuals.

Tattoos as well as piercings are becoming increasingly more present and perpetually popular in many cities, cultures and countries around the world regardless of the usual standard demographics of age, race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status and beliefs. In the U.S., individuals seeking such body modifications have commonly reported diverse psychological motives, goals and objectives. A qualitative study consisting of archival surveys was applied to assess and evaluate the relevance and possible link between trauma, tattoos and piercings and the capacity to achieve coping for healing, hope and help.

As tattoos and piercings are becoming increasingly popular and present among societal cultures, those who seek to obtain such often convey diverse motives. Tattoos and piercings have significant and intense personal relevance and meaning. Far too often there is a lack of studies that examine possible links between tattoos and piercings with experiences of childhood abuse and neglect. There is growing evidence of relationships between traumatic loss and tattoos and piercings. Equally essential and worth noting is that not all loss is traumatic, but all trauma involves loss.

The results of this study indicate tattoos and piercings are frequent and more common among individuals who report a history or life of experiences involving childhood abuse, trauma, neglect, and victimization. The proportion of participants with tattoos and piercings increases as a function of the severity of all assessed types of abuse and neglect (emotional, physical, and sexual abuse; emotional and physical and neglect). The study further reflects regression analyses which included the covariates of age, gender, education, and income, and the sum of significant kinds of childhood abuse and neglect are positively related to having tattoos and/or piercings. The study concludes that body modifications could have special significance for individuals who have survived adversity, in particular, interpersonal trauma at the hands of caregivers. These findings could inform screening procedures and low-threshold access to psychotherapeutic care as means and mechanisms of aiding coping and healing.

Keywords: Grief; Trauma; Curious Case; Tattoos; Piercings; Coping Mechanism; Mental Health

References

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3. Phillips Suzanne B. “Tattoos After Trauma: 6 Qualities of Healing Potential” (2021).
4. Jackson Chris. “More Americans Have Tattoos Today than Seven Years Ago” (2019).
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6. Borkenhagen Ada., et al. “The association of childhood abuse and neglect with tattoos and piercings in the population: evidence from a representative community survey”. BMC Psychology 105 (2022).
7. Amanda Ryan. “The Difference between Tattoos and Piercings - and Why You Should Only Trust a Professional for Your Ink” (2024).
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Citation

Citation: Eric Rogers. “Grief, Trauma and the Curious Case of Tattoos and Piercings as Coping Mechanism in the World of Mental Health".Acta Scientific Neurology 8.6 (2025): 14-20.

Copyright

Copyright: © 2025 Eric Rogers. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.