A woman risked blindness to get her eyeballs tattooed – but ended up with a completely different side-effect.
Aurora Arena booked in for a five minute ink session to completely transform her appearance. She took the leap even though the procedure can lead to a loss of eyesight if it is not executed "perfectly".
She said: “Eyeball tattoos are four injections per eye of tattoo ink diluted with water. It must be done perfectly or else you will go blind."
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Despite admitting she now looks like a "fish", the 28-year-old is chuffed by the finished results. She said: “I love my eyeball tattoos and I love that they drive intolerant, judgmental people away from me."
Aurora, who has battled depression, believes the tattoos have changed her life. She said: “I did it to heal, and I don’t regret a thing. I looked in the mirror and I looked so weird. I loved it."
When she posted pictures of her eyeball ink, there were plenty of people who loved her quirky new look.
One wrote: “I wish my eyes looked like this.” And another said: “You do look like a fish. That’s so fun.”
However, others were concerned Aurora may have second thoughts in years to come. A critic pointed out: “I mean some day you might regret that, who knows?”
Even though Aurora is delighted with how her tattoos turned out, we do not recommend getting your eyeballs inked because it's extremely dangerous. Additionally, if you are suffering from depression, seek help from a doctor or mental health professional. You can also contact Samaritans' 24-hour helpline on 116 123 or email them at [email protected].
Eyeball tattoos, also known as scleral tattoos or scleral pigmentation, involve injecting ink directly into the white part of the eye (the sclera) to permanently change its colour.
The procedure is so dangerous because it sparks risk of infection, migration of ink, inflammation and allergic reactions.
Even more concerningly, eyeball tattoos can cause blindness if they are injected too deeply or incorrectly.
Ink can enter the eye’s interior, damaging the retina or other critical structures, potentially causing permanent blindness.
There have been multiple instances of this happening in recent years. Australia's most tattooed woman – Amber Luke – went blind for three weeks after getting her eyes inked.
Meanwhile, a model who got her eyes inked black lost sight in one eye. She later took her tattooist to court.