Why Do Thai Girls Love Getting Tattoos?

[Chris Daley]

It's because they want to be novel homeless and not just homeless.

[GammaGlobulin]

I think girls and guys should feel free to look how they want to look.

So far, I haven't seen any girls with a bone through their nose....like some I know of....

If I were a sex worker, or if I decide to become one in the future, after my sex change, then I will also get a bone through my nose.

 

After all, in this new age of ours, there seems no stigma attached to any form of aberrant behavior...which we now call enlightenment, ...maybe...

 

 

 

[ericthai]

12 hours ago, Patong2021 said:

No need for a complex explanation when a commonsense simple explanation suffices: The vast majority of tattooed prostitutes have mental illness. Being inked is also part of the subculture. 

 

Multiple studies have documented the link between mental illness and the likelihood of people to be heavily tattooed and to favour face, neck and full sleeve type tattoos. There is no denying that prostitutes often have multiple mental illness conditions. They also engage in high risk behaviours. Examples of studies are;

 

International Journal of Dermatology 2019 Jul;58(7):816-824 : Are tattoos associated with negative health-related outcomes and risky behaviors?  Karoline Mortensen PhD, Michael T. French PhD, Andrew R. Timming PhD

Individuals with tattoos were more likely to be diagnosed with a mental health issue and to report sleep problems. People who had tattoos were also more likely to be smokers, to have spent time in jail, and to have a higher number of sex partners in the past year.

 

Annals of Epidemiology 2012 Jan;22(1):51-6: Who gets tattoos? Demographic and behavioral correlates of ever being tattooed in a representative sample of men and women, Wendy Heywood 1, Kent Patrick, Anthony M A Smith, Judy M Simpson, Marian K Pitts, Juliet Richters, Julia M Shelley

Men with lower levels of education, tradesmen, and women with live-out partners are more likely to be tattooed. Tattooing was also associated with risk-taking behaviours, including smoking, greater numbers of lifetime sexual partners, cannabis use (women only) and ever having depression (men only). Tattoos still appear to be a marker for risk-taking behavior in adults.

 

Commonsense also differentiates between youthful misadventure, drunken folly and intentional group affiliation such as the tattoos done by elite athletes who will ink the Olympic insignia or their team banner.

 

what about the older ladies in the USA getting tattoos?  I've seen allot of nurses now in the US with tattoos.

I'm seeing people in their 70's who have tattoos or getting a tattoo for the first time. So I think it's more of a trend these days. 

[FriscoKid]

2 minutes ago, ericthai said:

what about the older ladies in the USA getting tattoos?  I've seen allot of nurses now in the US with tattoos.

I'm seeing people in their 70's who have tattoos or getting a tattoo for the first time. So I think it's more of a trend these days. 

 

Those are all Trump voters. Normal Americans don't get tattoos.

[bkk6060]

A sign of insecurity and probably mental illness in my opinion.

I think many males get them to look macho possibly due to small penis.

[Real Name Hidden]

The girls do it to impress each other, same with silicone. 

[SiSePuede419]

They're getting tattoos like everyone else to express their individuality. 😀

[thrilled]

I believe it’s monkey see monkey do. They see western movies of some women having tattoos so they decide they will also. 
I believe most females  if  they aren’t into the bars etc aren’t going this route

[it is what it is]

 

why do foreign western guys who indulge in the sex industry have so many tattoos, and are so fat and bald?

[NedR69]

I see many Thai women with butterflies, birds and feathers....most, if not all, are working in the entertainment business.  

 

Nothing wrong with tats if you can cover them with biz casual attire.  But if you get that crap on your neck, hands, and chest...you are marked for life and everyone sees it.  

 

If your work is such that clients, work environment, etc may find this unprofessional, it's smart to not make that kind of life decision.  Tourists and maybe some expats, that might possibly be destined to become an older beg-packer or cheap charlie from some crap hole country like ________________ (fill in the blank with your fav country to bash).  Full sleeves, entire head (usually shaved bald, larger size gourd, bad teeth), well you are special, or especially...._____________ (fill in blank with your favorite derogatory word).

 

Crap, how did I digress to talking about someone with a big gourd. 55 

[henryford1958]

Doesn't every young person have tattoos now? Hard to walk down any street without seeing people covered in tattoos.

[In Full Agreement]

21 hours ago, KhunLA said:

If you leave the P4P area, then you'll notice lots of other folks are all tatted up also, though not as noticeable, since dressing a bit more conservative.

 

 

 

Maybe everybody suffers from some mental illness.

[ifmu]

21 hours ago, Patong2021 said:

No need for a complex explanation when a commonsense simple explanation suffices: The vast majority of tattooed prostitutes have mental illness. Being inked is also part of the subculture. 

 

Multiple studies have documented the link between mental illness and the likelihood of people to be heavily tattooed and to favour face, neck and full sleeve type tattoos. There is no denying that prostitutes often have multiple mental illness conditions. They also engage in high risk behaviours. Examples of studies are;

 

International Journal of Dermatology 2019 Jul;58(7):816-824 : Are tattoos associated with negative health-related outcomes and risky behaviors?  Karoline Mortensen PhD, Michael T. French PhD, Andrew R. Timming PhD

Individuals with tattoos were more likely to be diagnosed with a mental health issue and to report sleep problems. People who had tattoos were also more likely to be smokers, to have spent time in jail, and to have a higher number of sex partners in the past year.

 

Annals of Epidemiology 2012 Jan;22(1):51-6: Who gets tattoos? Demographic and behavioral correlates of ever being tattooed in a representative sample of men and women, Wendy Heywood 1, Kent Patrick, Anthony M A Smith, Judy M Simpson, Marian K Pitts, Juliet Richters, Julia M Shelley

Men with lower levels of education, tradesmen, and women with live-out partners are more likely to be tattooed. Tattooing was also associated with risk-taking behaviours, including smoking, greater numbers of lifetime sexual partners, cannabis use (women only) and ever having depression (men only). Tattoos still appear to be a marker for risk-taking behavior in adults.

 

Commonsense also differentiates between youthful misadventure, drunken folly and intentional group affiliation such as the tattoos done by elite athletes who will ink the Olympic insignia or their team banner.

 

this is the stupidest post ever .... wise up buddy   and stop insulting thai people

[dcalaska]

Low self-esteem.

[john donson]

the OP interviewed all the girls he saw or chatgpt or copied some story from somewhere

[bradiston]

23 hours ago, Patong2021 said:

No need for a complex explanation when a commonsense simple explanation suffices: The vast majority of tattooed prostitutes have mental illness. Being inked is also part of the subculture. 

 

Multiple studies have documented the link between mental illness and the likelihood of people to be heavily tattooed and to favour face, neck and full sleeve type tattoos. There is no denying that prostitutes often have multiple mental illness conditions. They also engage in high risk behaviours. Examples of studies are;

 

International Journal of Dermatology 2019 Jul;58(7):816-824 : Are tattoos associated with negative health-related outcomes and risky behaviors?  Karoline Mortensen PhD, Michael T. French PhD, Andrew R. Timming PhD

Individuals with tattoos were more likely to be diagnosed with a mental health issue and to report sleep problems. People who had tattoos were also more likely to be smokers, to have spent time in jail, and to have a higher number of sex partners in the past year.

 

Annals of Epidemiology 2012 Jan;22(1):51-6: Who gets tattoos? Demographic and behavioral correlates of ever being tattooed in a representative sample of men and women, Wendy Heywood 1, Kent Patrick, Anthony M A Smith, Judy M Simpson, Marian K Pitts, Juliet Richters, Julia M Shelley

Men with lower levels of education, tradesmen, and women with live-out partners are more likely to be tattooed. Tattooing was also associated with risk-taking behaviours, including smoking, greater numbers of lifetime sexual partners, cannabis use (women only) and ever having depression (men only). Tattoos still appear to be a marker for risk-taking behavior in adults.

 

Commonsense also differentiates between youthful misadventure, drunken folly and intentional group affiliation such as the tattoos done by elite athletes who will ink the Olympic insignia or their team banner.

 

 

From AI Overview on Google, "Who gets tattoos"

 

Demographics

In the United States, 32% of adults have a tattoo, including: 

Gender: 38% of women have a tattoo, compared to 27% of men 

Race and ethnicity: 39% of Black Americans have a tattoo, compared to 35% of Hispanic, 32% of White, and 14% of Asian Americans 

Age: 41% of those under 30 have a tattoo, as do 46% of those ages 30 to 49

 

Seems there's not much to distinguish between over a third of American citizens and the average Thai bar girl when it comes to tattoos. Your academics need to get inked!

[Kinok Farang]

Like having blue hair and body piercings.They try to look different but end up all looking the same.

[kingstonkid]

Many feel that the bhuddist tattoo brings them luck and I am not talking about BAR girls.

 

The one thing I find here is the ability of people here that have little idea saying that the only reason that girls are working bars or free lance is tht they have little education an are mentally challenged.

 

Many of the young girls here come from Issan or other provinves and realize that they can not make any money or have a good life staying there.  They come to the big city looking for adventure, the cance to find a farang boyfriend and to make money.  Unfortunatley living in Issan and gong to school  does not give them the skills they need to work in many of the offices.

 

Then again some of the young ones that are working have families to feed or a university program to pay off.

 

I agree that there are girls with challenges but that is no differnet than any other area of life and at least these girls are working and not sitting on the side of the street begging. 

 

 

 

 

[PingRoundTheWorld]

23 hours ago, Patong2021 said:

No need for a complex explanation when a commonsense simple explanation suffices: The vast majority of tattooed prostitutes have mental illness. Being inked is also part of the subculture. 

You're taking biased "studies" done in western developed countries where there is a heavy stigma around prostitution and workers do suffer humiliation and poor conditions and applying them to a country where the attitude about sex and morality and money is very different. There is a whole spectrum of sex work in Thailand and while sure there are many who have suffered trauma and abuse, the majority did not. An extreme example would be girls with dayjobs who just moonlight occasionally to make ends meet, or a student who sidelines to get through school.

 

As far as reasons for tattoos go - I think there's many reasons: some girls do it to express themselves, some for the art, some think it's attractive, some do it after trauma, some do buddhist symbols because they think it'll bless them. And some are indeed suffering from varying degrees of mental illness and punish/brand themselves so they can feel pain.

 

Personally I like the tattoos on them if done well - especially full back tattoos - but I myself have no tattoos because I don't want to put anything permanent on my body in case I'll regret it later. I know these days it's possible to laser it out, but ouch...

[nana kid]

I live near Soi 4 ,and I see as many Male Tourists covered in Tats as the women                      yet I eat lunch at Ploencit Center food court, full of female office workers, and you hardly ever see a tatoo on a woman.  You figure it out

[PingRoundTheWorld]

On 12/2/2024 at 5:29 AM, KhunLA said:

If you leave the P4P area, then you'll notice lots of other folks are all tatted up also, though not as noticeable, since dressing a bit more conservative.

Yep. I know many girls with tattoos who are not prostitutes, but most foreign guys in Thailand only ever engage with ones who are so have blinders to the fact not every girl you meet in an entertainment venue is a hooker. Reminds me of a girl I dated who works in a car dealership who had several (discreet) tattoos and so did her friend (hiso rich ***** who liked foreigners but absolutely did not need their money). Also basically most girls I've met from Isaan had tattoos, working or not.

[sungod]

On 12/2/2024 at 9:28 AM, SoCal1990 said:

When you spend time out in Thailand’s ex-pat nightlife districts, you do notice one thing: tattoos are everywhere. It seems like every other girl who is on the game has ink, whether it’s a delicate floral design, bold tribal pattern, some mysterious Thai script or Buddhist icons, or just a messy mountain of ink. So, what’s behind it all? Is it fashion, or is there something deeper at play?

 

Some say tattoos are tied to personal childhood histories. Could it be that many of these girls, coming from tough backgrounds, broken homes, or rural poverty, use tattoos to express themselves or take greater ownership of their bodies? For some, could tattoos act as a kind of emotional shield, a way to visibly display their stories, struggles and psychological wounds for the world to see?

 

Or maybe it’s less about pain and more about standing out within the nightlife culture? Tattoos are more trendy now in Thailand, especially among some groups of younger people. For sex workers, working in an industry where appearance matters, is it possible that tattoos are just another way to stay fashionable or attract customers who find ink sexually intriguing?

 

There’s also the question of freedom. Could tattoos be a form of class rebellion in a society that often judges women harshly? These girls seem to face some stigma already because of their work or circumstances, so is getting a tattoo their way of saying they don’t care what anyone thinks? Maybe it gives them a sense of control in an otherwise unwelcoming world.

 

Of course, not every tattoo is a sign of something deep. Maybe some of them just like the designs they choose. After all, tattoos can be seen as a status symbol for some too. For a girl who has moved from a small, poor village to the city and started earning some money, maybe getting a tattoo is simply a way to show off all of her success.

 

Are tattoos about fashion, rebellion, personal expression, trying to seek more attention or something else? Or are they no more than a blatant marker of emotional scarring of someone from a rough background who is now working out in the nightlife?

 

Nice bit of AI that,

 

Quite a lot of 'new members' in the same writing style these days.....

[sungod]

16 hours ago, Dan747 said:

 Some of the Guys in Iraq/Afghanistan wore Bicep Tatts as "Special Ops Want a Be's!!"

 

I never realised this type of tattoo was reserved for SF?

[sungod]

12 minutes ago, nana kid said:

I live near Soi 4 ,and I see as many Male Tourists covered in Tats as the women                      yet I eat lunch at Ploencit Center food court, full of female office workers, and you hardly ever see a tatoo on a woman.  You figure it out

 

Possibly due to the fact that at Ploenchit they may be wearing clothes,

 

That said if they are not, then please let me know and I'll treat you to a spot of lunch!

[NoshowJones]

20 hours ago, AlexRich said:

I guess they do it because everyone around them does it. As do people in the West. An “expression of individuality” is no more than the age old “following the crowd”.

 

My Dad had them because he was in the military, and they all did it for the reasons above. He had them before they were fashionable and got embarrassed about them in later years. I’ve never had a tattoo and never will. 
 

It’s like buying a patterned sweater and wearing it every day for the rest of your life. 
 

When I see them on women I cringe. 

It's a faze, just like guys with beards now, there was a time that beards and mousers were mostly grown to hide unattractive faces, but now even genuinely handsome guys grow facial hair which can easily be shaved off, but tattoos are for life.

I would bet that most tattooed people really do have low IQ's.

[Patong2021]

11 hours ago, ericthai said:

what about the older ladies in the USA getting tattoos?  I've seen allot of nurses now in the US with tattoos.

I'm seeing people in their 70's who have tattoos or getting a tattoo for the first time. So I think it's more of a trend these days. 

 

My comments were not in respect to the one offs, but were intended for the people with multiple visible  ink.

[NoshowJones]

5 hours ago, it is what it is said:

 

why do foreign western guys who indulge in the sex industry have so many tattoos, and are so fat and bald?

That's a very easy question to answer, how many good looking guys indulge in the sex industry?

Surely these overweight foreign western guys, (I would not necessary say bald guys as long as they are clean shaven and do not have the head upside down look) would never have the chance of sex with a hottie if they didn't indulge in the sex industry.

[Luuk Chaai]

22 hours ago, Lacessit said:

IMO peer group pressure has a lot to do with getting tatts.

 

It's sad, because getting a visible tatt announces to the world one is in a certain socio-economic class, which anyone in law enforcement zeroes in on.

 

There's also what happens with skin ageing and body shape changes.

 

I can remember in Chiang Mai a girl leaving the condo. Obviously a sex worker, covered in tatts, very skimpy clothes on a really lovely slim body. I was wondering why someone so beautiful would disfigure herself so badly.

 

for a starter ..       The Moral Majority ..  was neither

 

I find it really sad that a group of ..  let's call you men seem to get off on passing judgement on how a person wishes to display 

absolutely nothing wrong with anyone being tattooed..  it's their choice..!

 

I guess the next appropriate thread on this forum should be ...

Why do old fart / western white guys with an obvious stick up their a** 

think it's ok to sit on a bar stool and drink chang beer ( with ice ..  an obvious display of low class ) while sporting a

self induced fatty liver waistline probably in the 130cm plus range

 

the opitome of pathetic !

 

go ahead ..   throw stones ...

 

 

[Lacessit]

28 minutes ago, Luuk Chaai said:

 

for a starter ..       The Moral Majority ..  was neither

 

I find it really sad that a group of ..  let's call you men seem to get off on passing judgement on how a person wishes to display 

absolutely nothing wrong with anyone being tattooed..  it's their choice..!

 

I guess the next appropriate thread on this forum should be ...

Why do old fart / western white guys with an obvious stick up their a** 

think it's ok to sit on a bar stool and drink chang beer ( with ice ..  an obvious display of low class ) while sporting a

self induced fatty liver waistline probably in the 130cm plus range

 

the opitome of pathetic !

 

go ahead ..   throw stones ...

 

 

It's not about morals, I couldn't care less.

 

Go ahead, prove to me law enforcement does not classify people on the basis of their appearance. Good luck with finding evidence otherwise.

 

I haven't been in a bar for about ten years, gave up what little alcohol I did drink about 18 months ago.

 

Normal BMI, waist 38 cm.

 

Don't bruise yourself jumping to conclusions.

[WDSmart]

I don't like tattoos on either men or women. If given a choice, I wouldn't associate with anyone with a tattoo, but sometimes I have to.