Celebratory Tattoo?

browneyednurse28f · Jun 19, 2006

My husband graduated from his RN program in June 06. For a celebration gift, he wanted a tattoo. He has never had a tattoo before. He went down and bought one. It had a nursing symbol and the letters RN in bold in the middle. He had it placed on his deltoid. It was a big accomplishment for him.

:paw: Angela

ortess1971 · Jun 19, 2006

Thanks for the reply...I have been looking for a symbol to use..I thought maybe that symbol with the snake around the pole but I think that's more of a medical symbol. Then I saw a chinese symbol for healer but I just read an article that said you have to be careful because the symbols aren't always translated correctly. My luck, I'd end up with one that said "bimbo" or something!:roll

ktwlpn, LPN · Jun 20, 2006

Thanks for the reply...I have been looking for a symbol to use..I thought maybe that symbol with the snake around the pole but I think that's more of a medical symbol. Then I saw a chinese symbol for healer but I just read an article that said you have to be careful because the symbols aren't always translated correctly. My luck, I'd end up with one that said "bimbo" or something!:roll

Here is some interesting stuff------(more then you ever wanted to know,I bet.)I do think it would make an awesome tat-it's a good choice.....................................................

A caduceus is a winged staff with two snakes wrapped around it. It was an ancient astrological symbol of commerce and is associated with the Greek god Hermes, the messenger for the gods, conductor of the dead and protector of merchants and thieves. It was originally a herald's staff, sometimes with wings, with two white ribbons attached. The ribbons eventually evolved into snakes in the figure-eight shape. The number eight is important to the practitioners of judicial astrology.

In some cases, depictions of the Greek kerykeion can be radically different from that of the traditional caduceus .These representations will feature the two snakes atop the wand (rod), crossed to create a circle with the heads of the snakes resembling "horns." In this form, it looks remarkably similar to the symbol for the planet Mercury - while Mercury the god is the Roman name for Hermes, who carries the kerykeion, or caduceus.

In the seventh century, the caduceus came to be associated with a precursor of medicine, based on the Hermetic astrological principles of using the planets and stars to heal the sick. As a symbol for medicine, the caduceus is often used interchangeably with the Rod of Asclepius (single snake, no wings), although learned opinion prefers the Rod of Asclepius, reserving the caduceus for representing commerce.[1] Historically, the two astrological symbols had distinct meanings in alchemical and astrological principles. Some medical organizations join the serpents of the caduceus with rungs to suggest a DNA double-helix.

The symbol's origins are thought to date to as early as 2600 BC in Mesopotamia, and there are several references to a caduceus-like symbol in the Bible, namely in Numbers 21:4-9, and 2 Kings 18:4. During the Exodus, Moses was instructed by God to fashion a pole upon which he was to position a serpent made of bronze; when looked upon, this Nehushtan, as it was called in Hebrew, would spare the lives of the Israelites stricken by venomous snake bites. The intent was that people would look upward and be reminded to pray to God, but eventually the meaning was forgotten and this symbol was apparently worshiped by the Hebrew people until the reign of Hezekiah as described in 2 Kings 18:4.

Walter Burkert has two figures in his book which show a rod with two intertwined snakes winding around a central axis from Mesopotamia in 2200 BC, and a similar image from Crete in 700 BC. 1

It was used by the astrologer priests in the Eleusinian Mysteries of ancient Greece, and has been associated with the Gnostic Corpus Hermeticum and Kundalini Yoga, where it is thought to be a symbolic representation of the "subtle" nerve channels the "ida", "pingala", and "sushumna" described in yogic kundalini physiology.

NJNursing, ASN, RN · Jun 21, 2006

I got myself a tattoo back in April while I was still in nursing school. It's RN written in fancy letters and a small red cross next to the 'N' for my red cross volunteerism - both of which I'm dedicated to. I knew it was a bit premature to have the RN tattooed (which it's on my foot - I'll explain in a bit) being I hadn't even graduated school (which I since have and am taking my boards in 3 weeks), but for me it was sheer inspiration. I had the tattoo and it's permanant - therefore I had to earn it by doing the best I could through school and now studying for my boards. And it's truly worked for me. Here's a picture: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v185/Mischele2k2/NewTattoo.jpg

As for why on my foot? Well when I got my first tattoo when I was 19 (only a whopping 8 years ago), I wanted to get it somewhere that as I aged would not wrinkle, deform nor sag thus making it truly hideous. I wanted to enjoy it for the remainder of my life and have it just as pretty as the day I got it. Thus I thought about my feet - looking at old people's feet they really don't change vastly, so my tattoos would look the same there for years.

all4schwa · Jun 21, 2006

i am all about the celebratory tattoo, i would be interested in more ideas...i would like it to be nursing related... smiley face with a nurses cap?

MIA-RN1, RN · Jun 24, 2006

After I pass my boards on July 24th I am going to get a tattoo that says NURSE in script and have ivy winding around it. I am thinking I will also have the kanji for Reiki next to it, since I am a Reiki practitioner also. I am thinking to do it just above my ankle.

Hellllllo Nurse, BSN, RN · Jun 24, 2006

Thanks for the reply...I have been looking for a symbol to use..I thought maybe that symbol with the snake around the pole but I think that's more of a medical symbol. Then I saw a chinese symbol for healer but I just read an article that said you have to be careful because the symbols aren't always translated correctly. My luck, I'd end up with one that said "bimbo" or something!:roll

The "snake around the pole" is a caduceus.

I've read that the orginins of the caduseus stem from the greek goddess Hygeia (sp) and that the symbol was originally associated with nursing, prior to medicine.

Hellllllo Nurse, BSN, RN · Jun 24, 2006

"Meditrine, Hygeia and Panacea: The children of Asclepius included his daughters Meditrina, Hygeia and Panacea who were symbols of medicine, hygiene and healing (literally, "all healing") respectively. Two of the sons of Asclepius appeared in Homer's Illiad as physicians in the Greek army (Machaon and Podalirius).

Note that the classic Hippocratice Oath is sworn "by Apollo the physician, by Æsculapius, Hygeia, and Panacea, ....."

Despite the unequivocal claim of the staff of Asclepius to represent medicine (and healing), the caduceus, a rod with two entwined serpents topped by a pair of wings appears to be the more popular symbol of medicine in the United States, probably due to simple confusion between the caduceus and the staff of Asclepius, the true symbol of medicine. Many people use the word caduceus to mean both of these emblems...."

Like the staff of Asclepius, the caduceus became associated with medicine through its use as a printer’s mark, as printers saw themselves as messengers of the printed word and diffusers of knowledge (hence the choice of the symbol of the messenger of the ancient gods). A major reason for the current popularity of the caduceus as a medical symbol was its illinformed [03] official adoption as the insignia for the Medical Department of the United States Army in 1902.

http://www.drblayney.com/Asclepius.html

Hellllllo Nurse, BSN, RN · Jun 24, 2006

"His seven children were his assistant physicians and nurses. Hygeia, one of his daughters, washed and scrubbed patients from morning till night. When one noticed how quickly they regained their health, the concept that cleanliness helped the healing process replaced the one that proclaimed that soap and water killed the sick. As with hospitals, this concept too became lost through the centuries. In the early days of our country, people washed at best twice a year. Not until the middle 1800s did the idea that washing one's hands prior to surgery resulted in higher patient survival from the ordeal."

Hellllllo Nurse, BSN, RN · Jun 24, 2006

Hygeia, Goddess of Healing

The asteroid Hygeia is the embodiment of the archetypal feminine healer and wise women. Hygeia’s symbolic glyph is the caduceus and her lineage is in the healing arts. Her father Asclepius, a renowned healer of ancient times, trained her as the nurse who is ‘hands on’ as the practical assistant in life or death. She is the herbalist with an innate understanding of the medicinal plant world and the naturopath who gently guides and nourishes our vitality. In this lecture we will explore the influences when Hygeia is prominently placed in or transiting a chart? (Supplementary Techniques)

http://www.faainc.org.au/Conferences/2006/2006%20lectures.htm

Apparently, different sources disagree on the origin of the caduceus.

ortess1971 · Jun 24, 2006

My cousin got her first tattoo today and I went for moral support(I have 4). I was tempted to get mine today but I still haven't settled on a design I like so I'm going to hold off until I find one I really love.