The Restorative Power of Medical Tattoos | Becky Barker | TED

翻译人员: Chen Zhang 校对人员: Yuwei Wu

Let's talk about tattoos, shall we?

我们来谈谈纹身吧。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

I know some of you here tonight

今晚肯定有些观众暗藏了纹身吧？

have probably got a sneaky little tattoo hidden away,

which means you're in the cool club.

说明你是潮人俱乐部的一员哦。

Don't worry, the cool club's not exclusive,

没事儿，我们俱乐部很开放的，

you can join at any time.

随时欢迎任何人加入！

(Laughs)

（笑声）

But what really springs into mind when I say the word tattoo?

不过当我说出“纹身”一词时， 你想到了什么呢？

Is it artistic, expressive, beautiful, ugly, intimidating,

它是一种艺术，一种表达，很好看；

还是不好看、吓人，你不喜欢？

just not for you?

There's no wrong answers, by the way.

当然，这个问题没有错误答案。

Have you ever considered tattoos to be empowering or healing?

但你可曾想过：

纹身可以鼓舞或治愈人？

Tattoos are actually steeped in the history of healing.

其实早在古代， 纹身就被用于治疗。

5,000-year-old Ötzi the Iceman

5000 岁的木乃伊 “冰人奧茨”，

was discovered with markings tattooed on his limbs

其肢体上就被发现有纹身，

in areas that would have been causing him chronic pain.

位于原本可能出现慢性疼痛的位置。

In cultures and tribes throughout history, and even in modern times,

从远古时期到现代， 就一直存在着

symbols are tattooed onto parts of the body

在身上纹下符号

to alleviate symptoms of chronic illness.

消除慢性疼痛的做法。

And it works.

而且真的有用。

Now whether you believe in "juju,"

无论你是否相信西非的“朱朱”术中

mind over matter healing or placebo effect,

事物有治疗或安慰效果的观念，

or whether you consider this may actually be a science not yet proven,

亦或认为这是种未被证实的科学，

there's something pretty special about using tattooing for healing.

用纹身治疗，确实略有其事。

In our culture, we focus more on aesthetics, don’t we?

在我们的文化中，

我们更注重纹身的艺术效果，

But tattoos can still be very healing.

但纹身也能有治愈效果。

If someone has a part of their body that they don't like to show off,

如果有人讨厌暴露身上的某个部位，

you put a tattoo that they really love on there,

你在那纹了个纹身，他很喜欢，

they are first on the nudist beach in the summer every time.

他会成为裸体沙滩最早到的那个。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

People use decorative tattoos to cover scars

很多人用装饰性纹身遮盖疤痕，

or to signify a fresh start

标志一个全新的开始，

or even to commemorate a loved one that they may have lost.

又或是纪念痛失的爱人。

And all of those things can have such a positive effect

这些对心理健康有极大的正面效果。

on someone's mental health.

But tattoos are not just for adornment.

但纹身不仅可以用作装饰，

They also have a place in the medical field.

它在医疗界也有着一席之地。

Tattooing without pigment, known as microneedling,

无色的纹身，

又叫微针、干针、 胶原蛋白诱导疗法，

dry needling, collagen induction therapy,

can have an amazing effect on scar tissue.

对瘢痕组织有极佳效果，

It can reduce tightness in a scar, aiding mobility.

能减缓收缩，帮助恢复活动能力，

It can flatten a raised scar.

抚平凸起的疤痕，

And it can reduce the appearance of a scar.

减少疤痕面积。

We can even add skin-tone pigment into a scar

甚至能将肤色的色料添加到疤痕中，

to reduce the contrast between the scar and the surrounding skin,

减小疤痕与周围皮肤的颜色对比，

giving a camouflaged effect.

起到伪装作用。

We can tattoo hair follicles to give a balding gent a shaved head look

还能纹上毛囊图案，

让秃顶看起来像只是剃了头发；

or to add density to thinning hair,

或者让稀疏的头发显得茂密一些。

which is amazing for all genders.

We can tattoo eyebrows, belly buttons, toenails.

还有纹眉、纹肚脐眼、纹脚指甲。

We can improve the appearance of a cleft lip.

纹身还能改善唇裂、蹼趾的外观。

We can separate webbed toes.

The possibilities are endless.

纹身的作用有无限种可能。

Tonight, we're going to talk about areola restorative tattooing.

今天，我们来讲讲乳晕修复性纹身，

This is where we fix or create an areola, a nipple complex,

也就是修复或打造乳晕，

即乳头上的皮肤外观。

generally for people that have been through some kind of surgery.

通常是经过手术的患者做这个项目。

There are many reasons as to why someone would go through breast surgery.

进行乳房手术的原因有很多，

But tonight, we're going to focus on breast cancer.

今晚我们专注于乳癌患者。

When somebody loses their breast to cancer,

有些患者因为乳癌做了乳房切除术，

they have a mastectomy, and they choose to have a breast reconstruction.

随后会进行乳房重建。

The majority of time, the nipples don't make it.

但大多乳头无法恢复正常外观。

And when this happens,

这种情况下，

that person often doesn't connect with their new breast.

患者往往对重建乳房没有情感联结，

They don't have an emotional attachment to it,

没有任何感情，

they just see it as lumps of skin.

认为只是一层肌肤而已。

And sometimes when you add a nipple and areola complex

但增加了乳头和乳晕的外观后，

to a reconstructed breast,

it's like putting the cherry on the cake.

就像是在蛋糕顶层放上了樱桃，

(Laughter)

（笑声）

It allows that person to feel a sense of wholeness,

有时就会让患者感到完整，

confidence,

感到自信，

maybe even a little bit sexy.

甚至可能感到有些小性感。

And it's an interesting phenomenon.

这现象很有意思，

When you put a nipple onto a breast that didn't have a nipple,

往一个没有乳头的乳房点上乳头后，

all of a sudden it's a bit taboo.

就像产生了魔法一样。

But what happens if that tattoo fades?

但纹身逐渐淡化后，会怎么样呢？

Does the empowerment fade as well?

它带来的力量，是否也会淡化？

I'm going to talk through how I came to the answer to that question.

让我告诉你，我是如何得知答案的。

I started my tattoo apprenticeship in 2008.

我从 2008 年开始学习纹身。

I use the term "apprenticeship" very loosely

这里的“学习”不是正规的那种，

because there actually aren’t any formal qualifications in any kind of tattooing,

因为纹身行业没有正规的资格证，

and there aren't any regulations regarding quality.

也没有条规评判质量好坏。

So an apprenticeship in traditional body art is work-based training.

人体艺术的传统方式是在工作中学。

You work under master tattooers,

你跟随着你的纹身师父，

learning everything that you need to know about how to tattoo

学习有关纹身的所有知识，

before you even ever do a tattoo.

尽管还没动手做过一个纹身。

The day I came to create my first tattoo was the most terrifying day of my life.

我第一次创作纹身的那天，

是我人生中最可怕的一天。

(Laughs)

And the only thing I could liken it to is like learning to drive.

我唯一想到能类比的， 就是学开车。

I'm guessing most of you have sat in a car at some point,

我猜你们大多都坐过别人开的车吧，

and a lot of us have sat in cars our whole lives.

很多人可能一辈子都坐别人开的车。

We've watched other people drive.

我们看别人开车，

They make it look really easy.

看起来很轻松。

Some people can even multitask while driving.

有些人甚至可以边开车边干其他事。

Not recommended, but they can do it.

不建议这样，但有些人可以做到。

And then when you get into that driver's seat yourself for the first time,

然后当你自己第一次坐进驾驶座时，

you suddenly realize you're in charge of a death machine.

才突然意识到，手里的东西能致命。

You don’t know which foot the brake pedal is

你甚至不知该用哪只脚踩刹车，

or what gear you’re supposed to be in.

应该挂几档。

你开在路中间，要撞上旁边的车了。

You’re driving in the middle of the road,

你感觉自己开得太快了，

you're about to hit your mates,

everything feels like you're moving really fast,

时速肯定都有 90 英里了，

you must be doing 90 miles an hour.

实际上才 5 英里， 背后是一条长队。

You’re going five miles an hour, and there’s a queue of traffic behind you.

That for me is what learning to tattoo was like.

对我来说，学纹身就是这种感觉。

There are so many variables.

有好多要注意的东西。

You’ve got to think about your setup, your machine, the person’s skin,

你必须考虑环境、机器、

顾客的皮肤条件和忍痛程度，

the person's pain threshold.

还有好多好多，要注意的可太多了。

The list goes on, and it’s very overwhelming.

It takes most tattoo artists about three years of full-time tattooing

大多纹身师需要全职做三年，

to reach a point where tattooing actually becomes like second nature,

才能自然地掌控纹身技术，

the same as driving becomes second nature after a while.

熟练开车也同样需要一段时间。

I was doing work-based training, so I always had support.

我是在工作中学习，所以有师父帮。

If I came across a situation I didn't know how to overcome,

一旦遇到不会处理的场景，

I had someone to help me,

有人能帮我。

which meant that nobody ever left me with a really terrible tattoo.

也就是说，每个纹身都不至于失败。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

Which is important

这很至关重要。

because as empowering as a great tattoo can be,

好的纹身可以给予人力量，

a bad tattoo can have a really negative effect

那失败的纹身也能产生负面效果，

on someone's quality of life.

影响被纹身者的生活品质。

If learning how to tattoo body art is like learning to drive a car,

如果说学习纹身像学习开车，

learning how to do medical tattooing on damaged skin that's scarred

那么，学习在有疤痕、遭受过辐射

或坏死的皮肤上进行治疗性纹身，

or may have been through radiation or had necrosis

would be like learning to drive an Arctic lorry.

就像是学习驾驶货车。

Same basic skill set,

基本技术不变，

but a lot more pressure and a lot more knowledge needed.

但压力大很多，需要的知识多很多。

When I decided I wanted to move into medical tattooing,

我决定转做治疗性纹身后，

I went about my learning in two ways.

我通过两种方式学习治疗性纹身。

The first, like most people that want to learn anything, I did a course.

像大多人学大多事那样，我上了课。

And the course I chose to do was in areola micropigmentation.

我学的课是关于乳晕微色素沉着的。

This word micropigmentation is a little bit misleading.

微色素沉着这个词有点引人误解，

It sounds very clean, doesn't it?

听起来很纯净，对不对？

It sounds professional, very suit and tie.

听起来很专业，高级。

But I'm going to tell you a secret.

我要跟你揭露一个“行业机密”：

It means tattoo.

这个词的意思就是纹身。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

Micropigmentation is the act of implanting pigment into the dermis,

微色素沉着指将色素植入真皮。

which is the definition of a tattoo, but it sounds nicer, doesn't it,

这不就是纹身么？

但听起来更好，是吧？没那么吓人。

a bit less scary.

The difference appears to come

两者的差别在于

in the fact that micropigmentation is designed to fade,

微色素沉着是会褪色的，

and it's really designed for the tattooing of eyebrows,

主要用于纹眉、纹唇、纹眼线，

lips and eyeliner,

and it's designed to fade and facilitate a regular top up.

会逐渐褪色，需要定期维护。

And when it comes to permanent makeup,

关于半永久妆容，

there are many reasons as to why that would be important,

有很多原因导致只做半永久，

but one of which is that fashions change.

其中一个原因便是潮流瞬息万变。

I'm not sure about you,

不知道你们怎么样，

but my nipples have never really been affected by fashion.

我的乳头是不太需要追逐潮流。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

These courses last about two to three days,

那门课大概持续了两三天，

and they're aimed at people that already do micropigmentation,

主要面向做微色素沉淀的工作者，

也就是半永久妆容师，

so permanent make-up artists.

But they are also aimed at people

但也面向甚至未见过纹身机器的人，

that have never even seen a tattoo machine before,

such as people from the medical field,

例如医疗行业工作者。

which would be like teaching someone to drive an Arctic lorry in two days

这就有点像用两天时间教人开货车，

and just handing them the keys without them having ever driven a car,

然后没让他们先试试，

就把车钥匙给了他们。

wouldn't it?

Even after ten years of tattooing body art,

哪怕我做了十年纹身，

my two days didn't fill me with confidence.

短短两天的课程很难让我胸有成竹，

I needed more knowledge.

我需要了解更多知识。

I chose to do a mentorship with a lady called Stacie-Rae Weir.

我决定让一位女士教我，

她叫斯泰西蕾·维尔 （Stacie-Rae Weir）。

Stacie-Rae is the founder of ART

她是乳晕修复纹身组织创始人。

which stands for Areola Restorative Tattoo,

这个组织简称 ART，

and it's a global collective of highly skilled restorative tattoo artists

集聚了全球顶尖的修复纹身师，

that all work to a standard set by ART.

并制定修复纹身的行业标准。

In an industry that has no standards,

在没有规章制度的行业中，

a standard that's high enough is really important.

一套要求严格的行业标准非常重要。

ART focuses on three main aspects.

ART 主要看三个方面。

The first is experience.

第一个是经验。

We can't learn how to tattoo damaged skin

面向健康皮肤的纹身术若尚未精湛，

until we've mastered tattooing healthy skin.

损伤皮肤上的纹身术就不可能学好。

We have to learn how to do something called reading the skin.

我们需要学如何识别皮肤状态，

This is where we can tell, as we're tattooing,

即在做纹身时，要判断

how much trauma we are causing,

切换技术造成了何种程度的痕迹。

when to change our techniques.

但这需要时间和经验。

That takes time, that needs experience.

The second is realism.

第二个标准是仿真能力。

Nipples are as unique as fingerprints,

乳头就像手指一样，具有独特地位，

although not an alternative to fingerprints.

虽然不如手指那么不可替代。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

We have to have some artistic ability to create something truly realistic

所以我们纹出的效果得自然真实，

that's actually going to make someone feel whole again.

才能让顾客再次感到完整。

And the third is permanence.

第三个标准是永久度。

I have to be completely honest.

我必须承认，

I didn't really grasp how important permanence was

我本不理解永久度对纹身有多重要，

when it came to these tattoos,

until I started doing them out in the big, wide world.

直到我为更多顾客和原因做纹身。

People still come to me with these really strange pink smudges

顾客会再次来找我，

乳头的位置只有奇怪的粉色圆点，

where their nipple should be.

And this is what's left over from micropigmentation.

那是微色素沉着留下的痕迹，

This is the fading tattoo.

也就是已褪色的乳头纹身。

I had one client who had areola micropigmentation

有个顾客在找到我的 12 年以前

performed 12 years before she came to me.

做过一次乳晕微色素沉着。

And she was so disappointed with the way her breast looked

纹身褪色的模样让她很失望，

with these strange pink smudges

以至于没敢让任何人看见她的胸部，

that she hadn't shown anyone her breasts in all that time,

not even her husband.

哪怕是她的丈夫。

And now she feels so confident

现在，在我为她纹上了

after I tattooed a realistic nipple and areola complex for her

一个自然且永久的乳头和乳晕后，

她的自信又回来了。

that will last forever,

she has allowed me to show you the picture tonight.

这张照片经过了她的允许而展示的。

So that's how empowering a tattoo can be.

这就是纹身的力量。

But it did get me thinking,

这就让我想起来，

why aren't we talking about this?

我们为什么不谈乳晕纹身呢？

How many people are suffering in silence?

有多少人在默默地承受着？

It's not the kind of thing you talk about down the pub, is it?

乳晕纹身不是唠家常的话题，

“最近怎么样？你的乳房还行吗？”

"Alright then? How's your nipple doing?"

我们对之闭口不谈。

We just don't talk about it.

I wanted to give people a voice.

但我想听听被纹身者的声音。

So I put together a survey.

所以我设计了一个调查，

With the help of ART and the Nipple Innovation Project,

和 ART 以及乳房创新计划 （Nipple Innovation Project）

we shared this survey globally,

面向全球发放调查问卷，

and we asked people that had had restorative tattooing done

询问做过乳晕修复纹身的人，

of their areola,

how they felt once it had healed.

修复完成之后，后来感觉如何。

We already know from previous studies and experience

从此前的研究和经验中，

how amazing getting a nipple tattoo can be

我们知道，对没有乳头的人来说，

for someone that hasn't got a nipple.

纹了一个乳头有多开心。

But we wanted to establish whether there was a link

但我们想看看，纹身者后来的心态

between the healing of that tattoo and how that person felt moving forward.

是否也在纹身的治疗范围。

Unsurprisingly, the majority of people that completed our survey

果不其然，填写了问卷的大多人

had had areola micropigmentation done,

在乳晕修复前都做过微色素沉着，

meaning that their tattoo faded.

也就是有过纹身褪色的经历。

Of this group, 81 percent admitted that they were not satisfied

其中 81% 表示对治疗结果不满，

with the healed results.

51 percent admitted that they had suffered adverse mental health effects

51% 表示曾因整个治疗过程

due to the healing of their tattoos.

反而对心理健康造成了负面影响。

There were a lot of really heartbreaking comments on this survey,

我们收到了很多令人心碎的回答。

and the one that spoke to me the most

和我有最多交流的一位，

is that there is a lady

是一名女士，

who keeps her bra on in the bath

她甚至连洗澡时都穿戴着内衣，

because she hates the look of her breast reconstruction so much

因为她很厌恶她重建后的胸部

because of her faded nipple tattoos.

乳头褪色后的模样。

Imagine keeping your clothes on in the bath

试想你为了避免瞥见镜子里的自己，

just in case you catch a glimpse of yourself in the mirror.

而特意穿着内衣洗澡。

Imagine being the surgeon that has spent hours creating a really beautiful,

试想你是名外科医生，

花了几小时重建出对称好看的胸部，

symmetrical breast reconstruction

to have it aesthetically ruined by poor nipple tattoos.

却被褪色的乳头纹身毁了它的模样。

I am a trustee for the Nipple Innovation Project.

我是乳房创新计划NIP的受托人。

We are the UK's first tattoo cancer charity,

NIP 是英国首个 癌症纹身的慈善组织，

and our mission is to empower and dignify breast cancer survivors

用立体、真实、永久的乳头纹身

with 3D, realistic, permanent nipple tattoos.

守护乳癌康复者自尊是我们的使命。

We have a directory of artists throughout the UK

全英许多修复纹身师都是成员，

that all work to a standard set by NIP,

都遵循着 NIP 设立的标准工作，

another standard, very important,

NIP 设立的这套标准也很重要。

and funding is available from the charity

NIP 会发放基金补贴，

so that there is no financial burden on the clients.

确保进行修复的客人没有经济负担。

Our campaign for this year has been #mychoice.

我们今年的口号是“随心之选”。

True empowerment comes from making an informed decision.

不被隐瞒而清楚地做出选择，

才是真正的力量来源。

We believe everybody should have access to all of the knowledge that they need

我们认为，需要做决定前，

to make this decision.

人人都有权知道所有相关信息。

Some people were never told that their tattoo was going to fade.

有些人没被告知他们的乳头会褪色；

Some people found the idea of going back to hospital every year for a top up

有些人觉得每年回医院维护

会给他带来重复性伤害。

too traumatic.

People should know that there is a safe, permanent alternative.

他们有权知道还有安全永久的选择。

We recently spoke at the oncology convention at the NEC,

我们近期在 NEC 举办的肿瘤学大会

which was a great success,

进行了演讲，大获成功。

and one of the points that we were really trying to make

我们当时强调的一点是，

is that just because someone’s got funny-colored hair and tattoos

有些纹身师发色五花八门，

that draws on people with electric crayons for a living,

用电动蜡笔在人身上画画以谋生，

it doesn't mean that we're not professional.

但这不代表我们纹身师不专业，

It doesn't mean that we're not producing quality results.

不代表我们创造不出高质量的作品，

And it certainly doesn't mean we don't care about our clients.

不代表我们不在意客户。

Long gone are the days of the backstreet tattoo studio,

纹身工作室早已不再是地下产业了，

tattooing is actually a pretty upstanding career now.

纹身行业现在正在爬升呢。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

So there you go.

所以呢，

The word tattoo is not a dirty word.

纹身一词并不肮脏，

It's a transformational word.

它是能转变人的事物，

It's a life-changing word.

能改变生活的事物。

And when you give someone a tattoo that truly makes them feel whole again,

若你的纹身能让人再次感到完整，

it gives them confidence and a better quality of life,

它能给人以信心，鼓舞人生活。

that, my friends,

朋友们，

is how you use tattoos as a tool for empowerment.

这就是用纹身给人力量的方式。

Thank you.

谢谢。

(Applause)

（掌声）