Since the first tattoo was documented in 3300 B.C, body modification has gone through different stages of acceptance. Going through up and downs in popularity, changing one’s body has always been popular in teenagers. The type and reason for modifying their body is different for everyone

Tattoos

One of the most popular body modification that students undergo is a tattoo. The legal age of getting a tattoo is 18 years old without parent consent, although it is legal to get a tattoo under the age of 18 with a parent consent, most tattoo parlors don’t take on clients that are minors for insurance reasons.  

“I have the Hebrew word for brotherhood and it’s on the back of my arm on my tricep,” senior Josh Chapman said.

Some people get tattoos for a symbolic meaning.

“Well me and my brother both got the tattoo and we have a really good and close relationship and we always have,” Chapman said.  “We wanted to get something permanent that symbolized our relationship.”

Other people people get tattoos for aesthetic reasons.

“My tattoo is a goat on my forearm,” junior Jeremy Woolever said. “There is no significance. It looked cool and I liked the look of it and I don’t regret it.”

Students like senior Cherokee Hayden have endured the tattoo gun multiple times as a form of self expression.

“The one on my wrist is planets which connects me to my middle name,which is star,” Hayden said. “I was given that middle name because of my parent’s wedding song which had to do with love and the stars. The one under my elbow is a Celtic knot, which means protection and the one on my shoulder blade is a compass with the moon cycle because I like the idea of travel.”

With having a permanent body modification done, it often comes with pain, such as a tattoo gun.

“It was like a burning sensation,” Chapman said.

Along with a lot of the decisions you make in high school, a tattoo stays with you for the rest of your life.

“I’ve known that since I was young that I wanted one of these [tattoos],” Hayden said. “Maybe one day when I’m old and my skin is saggy I’ll be like ‘why did I think this was a good idea,’ but I don’t actually think I’ll regret it.”

Piercings

In high school, you are given a lot more freedom. With this freedom, some students choose to make permanent body modifications such as piercings.

“I have seven piercings,” junior Emily Cox said. “I was in third grade and I really wanted my ears pierced. I thought it looked really pretty and I wanted to be the same way.”

For some people, undergoing a permanent body modification sometimes comes with pain.

“My first holes [hurt] because I was only in third grade,” Cox said. “The others I could barely feel when I got them pierced.”

A piercing takes up to six weeks to become permanent, so not being able to take it out for an extended period of time can cause conflict.

“I have my nose pierced and five on my left [ear] and six on my right [ear],” sophomore Addy Stone said. “After soccer season I plan on getting more, but I have to take them out for soccer games.”

The decision to get a permanent piercing is easier for some, and harder for others.

“It’s up to the person like personally” sophomore Gabby Smith said. “I am planning on getting a belly button piercing but, like, I don’t expect everyone to get one. But also I don’t want people to be like shame on you, you little deviant.”

Dyed hair

A permanent change that is a little less painful than undergoing a tattoo gun or a piercing gun is color dying hair.

“I have my hair dyed hot pink,” sophomore Shannon Conner said. “I did it myself and I already have plans for next time.”

A lot of the time, people dye their hair to do something different and out of the ordinary.

“I got bored of having blonde hair so I was like ‘let’s do this’,” Smith said.

Smith has been color dying her hair since fourth grade.

“I was a very bored fourth grader with money and went into hot topic and bought the first thing I saw,” Smith said.

Some people like to dye their hair more than once.

“I lost count of how many times I dyed my hair after 35,” Conner said.

There are lots of hair dying trends going around right now, such a bleached hair, dyed tips and ombre. Many celebrities are influencing the new trend.

“I saw a few photos I liked on Tumblr and was like ‘those are cool, I could do that,’” Smith said.

A concern lots of people have with dyeing their hair is the damage it can cause over time to the hair.

“Well I know dyed hair can get super damaged and that was one of my parents’ main concerns when I first started dying my hair,” Smith said. “I have a few deep conditioners that I use every other week”

A lot of people have different opinions on people with dyed hair.

“I just like doing it and it is a way I express myself,” Smith said. “I understand that it’s not as professional, which is my boss’s thing, but if they are just like ‘I don’t like it,’ then I’m just like ‘then mind your own business.’”