The next step was to pick up the phone and book my appointment, but of course I chickened out a hundred times and never did it. I did, however, keep it as my desktop background for months and never got sick of it.

On Monday, January 7, I was with a friend, Sundos Al Ayoub, who had just gotten her tattoo a week earlier. She kept going on about how it was “uncomfortable,” but not at all painful. A couple of hours into the night, I found myself booked for a five o’clock appointment on Wednesday 9.

Tuesday morning, I was staring at the tattoo I was about to get inked somewhere on my body that I hadn’t yet figured and all I could think of was “that’s too thick, I’m going to die as Fareed Hattar enjoys inflicting all this pain getting that needle into the second layer of my skin for hours.” I needed something much thinner and subtler. That night, I had my dear friend and brilliant designer Chadi Serhal ready with the perfect one that, in my head, guaranteed less pain and less hours; actual tattoo design shown below.

Let me spare you the details of the nightmares I had that night.

Fast forward to 4:00pm the next day, the day I would be inked for life, Ayoub and I were having lunch and I was a little in denial. As we were walking to the car after lunch, it hit me, “this is quite sadistic, I am willingly about to submit myself to some serious and probably nerve damaging pain. I have gone mad, more so than I thought I already had.”

The actual experience was shot on camera, thanks to the lovely and equally sadistic Ayoub. Watch the video and good luck toying with the idea.

Editor’s note: Inspired by Deeb’s experience and the dilemma every girl went through before getting tattooed, or is still going through lamenting with the idea, 19TwentyThree has dedicated a special feature package on tattoos.

– Sondos Ayoub writes about the deeper meaning of tattoos and why it should mean more to the person than the “in” thing to do: Read it here.

– “La’an Allah al washem wal Washema,” the religious and social debate.

– Tattoo history and traditions in Egypt: “Inked Ancestors.”

– Learn which tattoos men think are sexy, which ones they frown upon and which ones they think are bold: “What your Tattoo Tells Men About you.”

–  Do not get tattooed before you read this; reviews on the best tattoo parlours in Egypt and the checklist everyone needs before getting inked.