We usually think of tattoos as optional body art, a form of self-expression. But they can be so much more. Just ask a young woman named Samira Omar from Canada who, while living in the UK, was brutally beaten and burned with boiling water by classmates she believed were her friends. In the wake of the attack, Samira was left with horrendous scars that made her unrecognizable. But the 17-year-old has found a way to at least partially recover, thanks to the emerging field of cosmetic tattooing.
Think cosmetic surgery, but using tattoo ink. Like some mastectomy patients chose to have nipples tattooed onto their reconstructed breasts, cosmetic tattooing gives people like Samira the chance to recover their physical appearance.
Once back in Canada, Samira met paramedical tattoo specialist Basma Hameed, an expert in cosmetic tattooing who suffered similar burns herself in an accident when she was a toddler. After years of painful procedures, Basma came upon cosmetic tattooing and perfected a technique that she used to transform her own face.
Now, Basma is helping Samira for free, saying, "I wanted to reach out and help as much as possible." Absolutely amazing.
In the CBC News report on Samira's story, Basma will tattoo Samira with permanent pigment that matches her natural skin tone. And that's not all! In the meantime, while Samira's burns heal, Basma showed her how to use a special scar concealer that she also developed.
Check it out.
See this video on The Stir by CafeMom.
Considering the horrifying experience Samira endured, the fact that this procedure was able to restore not just pigment to her skin but her confidence, too, is incredibly heartening.
Goes to show how tattoos can be so much more than just body art. In its newest, most groundbreaking forms, turns out ink can actually make someone feel whole again.
What's your reaction to how Basma transformed herself -- and her patients?
Image via CBC News