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‘I regret my tattoos now I have kids so I’m spending $50,000 to remove them’

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A mother says she’s come to regret the $15,000 she once spent covering large parts of her body in tattoos. And now she faces a whopping $50,000 bill to have them removed. Alexa Terese, 37, from Chico, Butte County, California, began getting inked at 16, starting with a small heart on her wrist that cost her $75. Over four years, she collected 25 more designs across her arms, neck and feet – from roses and cupcakes to a woman’s face on her shoulder. Now, she says the artwork no longer represents who she is as a mother (Picture: lexaterese / SWNS)
Alexa, an aesthetician and mother of two, admits she ‘hates’ the tattoos and feels ‘judged’ by others for having them. ‘The tattoos don’t reflect the person that I am now,’ she said. ‘I don’t hate the tattoos themselves – on someone else, I’m sure they’d be beautiful – I just hate them on my body.’ The change of heart began after she had children, when she started noticing how other parents reacted to her appearance (Picture: lexaterese / SWNS)
‘I’ve never received any comments at my kids’ school, but parents definitely look and judge in silence as soon as they see me,’ she said. ‘I regret them because I got them when I was far too young and far too quickly. At 18, no one knows who they are yet, and I definitely had no idea.’ Alexa said she got many tattoos out of insecurity and a desire for acceptance, something she now sees very differently as an adult (Picture: lexaterese / SWNS)
Her largest piece, a Japanese-style design featuring colored flowers and a koi fish, was her last tattoo nearly twenty years ago. It cost around $4,000 and took 25 hours to complete. Another full sleeve on her arm took eight hours and cost a similar amount. ‘My arms didn’t hurt, but it was a bit painful when it was on the sensitive parts, like my elbow and the inside of my armpit,’ she recalled. Looking back, she said: ‘It was definitely not worth spending all that money on my tattoos’ (Picture: lexaterese / SWNS)
Alexa says she ‘was the first of my three brothers to get tattoos’ and once felt proud of them. ‘I was a perfect kid, normal, and I just liked tattoos,’ she said. ‘A lot of them were inspired by something – I have a Mexican tattoo to link with my mum’s side of the family. My favourite was a clock with wings, which I got on my left arm. It’s set to the time of my birthday, which means time flies’ (Picture: lexaterese / SWNS)
For the past two years, Alexa has been undergoing painful laser sessions to erase some of her ink. So far, she’s spent about $600 removing tattoos from her fingers and hands. ‘It’s excruciating and you have to be patient because it takes time,’ she said. Each session lasts an hour and removing the rest would take up to three years and cost around $50,000 (Picture: lexaterese / SWNS)
‘I have had two removal sessions on my fingers and it was excruciatingly painful and very expensive. I realised it would take years and years and a lot of time and money to remove them. Removal is not as easy as people think.’ Despite the pain, she says she wants her children to learn from her experience and think twice before getting inked themselves (Picture: lexaterese / SWNS)
‘I have voiced my opinions and would not want them to get tattoos,’ she said. ‘I’ve raised them right, but when they’re older and want a tattoo, they can get one, but I will not be a fan.’ Alexa says she’s learned to accept the consequences of her choices, but she no longer wants to be defined by her past. ‘There is a definite stereotype, and I don’t like being called “the tattooed one” – I’d like to think that I’m a lot more than that. I realise I did this to myself and fully understand why I am judged. I’m not a victim, and this is all part of the consequences of my actions,’ she said. Alexa explained that public perception has been mixed. ‘I got a lot of positive feedback on mine, but I got an equal amount of hate, as I’ve been called a thug, a lowlife, a criminal, and uneducated. Any word you can think of, I’m sure I’ve been called it at some point’ (Picture: lexaterese / SWNS)
Now, Alexa says she’s focused on moving forward and no longer letting her tattoos define her. ‘I want people to really think before getting any, as, like me, you may regret them in years to come,’ she said. Having embraced a different outlook, she insists: ‘I will never get another tattoo.’ Though her past remains visible, she hopes sharing her story will make others pause before going to the tattooist (Picture: lexaterese / SWNS)

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