Mom undergoes years of laser treatment to undo heavily tattooed face

A woman with a heavily tattooed face underwent laser removal for more than three years to get rid of it completely.

Five years ago, Alyssa Zebrasky, 31, got a “Day of the Dead” tattoo on her face in a “toxic” relationship with her ex-partner.

Alyssa from Cleveland, Ohio said, “We [my ex and I] We were having a conversation one day and he said, “You should get your face tattooed.”

“Initially I said no, and then he just kept talking. [Now I believe it was] so no one else would want me

‘He chose it [the tattoo design] out. It was a day of the dead sugar skulls, it was my whole face.

“He was covered from head to toe [in tattoos]I guess he wanted us to be compatible.’

She ended up in police custody three times in six months – leading to her unusual mug shot going viral.

At one point, the couple even got into a brief chase with police, who accused them of “needing the bathroom.”

But now, after ending the relationship and going through rehab, Alyssa has changed her life.

“Looking back at these pictures, I’m just disappointed in myself,” she said.

“But I have to remember that I haven’t worked on myself or tried to learn to love myself the way I do now.

“Then I’m proud because change is possible and healing and learning new things is possible. I like it when I can look back and see my personal growth.”

The heavy machinery worker is now covering the tattoos with heavy primer and using the INK-nitiative charity program in Austin, Texas to remove them for good.

She documents her experience on social media with the support of her family and new partner, with whom she is in “the healthiest relationship”.

Alyssa has tattoos all over her body – but only wants to remove the ones on her face to forget the connection to her ex-partner.

“I was pulled into social media, everyone was saying really, really mean things about me and I didn’t even get a chance to tell my side of the story,” she said.

“In this six-month romance, it was a whirlwind that suddenly darkened. While I was in prison…he may have visited me twice.

“I think of that every time I look in the mirror. I started to mentally heal myself from everything I had been through with him.

“I went through a drug court program and went into rehab and changed. Now every time I look in the mirror I’m reminded of what I’ve been through.”

When she began the removal process in October 2019, she was told it would take 12 sessions.

“When I first started walking, they did my cheeks, forehead and hands because, like a tattoo, your body can only heal so much at once,” Alyssa said.

“Now the cheeks are gone, but we haven’t started around the mouth yet.

“The cheeks were fairly pain free but I had my nose done once and the nose hurts quite a bit.

“Each session lasts 20 minutes, the session is much quicker than a tattoo itself.

“I would relate the initial pain from the laser to a rubber band tearing against the skin, which is what the laser feels like and then it hurts for 30 minutes.

“It itches and hurts afterwards, almost like spilling oil from the oven on your hand, which is what I can best compare to how it feels on my hands.

“It doesn’t burn my face that much, though [there’s] Swelling.’

She said she has now “accepted” her face and wants others to learn from her experiences.

Alyssa said: “I always tuck her in when I was visiting family.

“My mom told me I didn’t have to tuck her in anymore, which was nice.

‘[My family] supported throughout the whole thing, they understand that I was in a vulnerable place.

“As much hate as I get on TikTok and social media, I don’t really pay attention.

“I could help someone in a similar situation, it could be a drug addiction or they’ve been through something really traumatic and they want to see someone through it.”

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