A woman has been left completely blind in one eye and is losing sight in the other after attempting to tattoo her eyeballs black.
Aleksandra Sadowska from Wroclaw, Poland, went to a tattoo artist after deciding she wanted to emulate rap artist Popek, who had previously had his own eyeballs blackened.
However, the botched procedure left the 25-year-old complaining of pains in her eyes. Local media reports that the tattooist, who is being referred to as Piotr A, told her this was normal and advised her to take painkillers.
Now, Piotr A is said to be facing three years in prison for unintentionally severely disabling the woman.
An investigation found the tattoo artist had made serious mistakes during the procedure by using ink designed for tattooing skin, which shouldn’t come into contact with eyes.
As per Mail Online, Sadowska’s lawyers told local media:
There is clear evidence that the tattoo artist did not know how to perform such a delicate procedure.
And yet he decided to perform it, which led to this tragedy.
Aleksandra was told by doctors the sight loss in her right eye was permanent and the damage was irreparable, and that she would likely soon lose the sight in her left eye too.
Aleksandra said:
Unfortunately, for now doctors do not give me much optimism for improvement. The damage is too deep and extensive. I’m afraid I will be completely blind.
I will not lock myself in the basement and get depressed. I have sadness behind me, but I live on.
Four years after Aleksandra’s ordeal began, the tattooist, who still runs his salon where he carries out mainly ear piercings, has now been charged.
He has pleaded not guilty, and his court case is expected to start soon.
When performed correctly, eyeball tattooing consists of injecting a tiny amount of ink under the conjunctiva (the clear membrane covering the front of the eye) and over the sclera (the whites of the eye).
It was first introduced more than a decade ago by body modification expert Luna Cobra and the late Shannon Larratt.
Even procedures that have been performed correctly can have unpredictable consequences, so it’s definitely not a decision to take lightly.
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Emma Rosemurgey is an NCTJ trained Journalist who started her career by producing The Royal Rosemurgey newspaper in 2004, which kept her family up to date with the goings on of her sleepy north east village. She graduated from the University of Central Lancashire in Preston and started her career in regional newspapers before joining Tyla (formerly Pretty 52) in 2017, and progressing onto UNILAD in 2019.