“It was a youthful mistake,” Asia Argento says on social media, referring to the tattoos that once expressed her curiosity and rebellious spirit. Today, they represent a past that no longer reflects who she is. So, she has decided to start over. Her parents warned her, but she has always gone her own way. Now, in a dramatic reversal, the actress is determined to erase her body art, turning to cosmetic surgeon Gaspare Reina for help.

Tattoo removal is possible, but it requires pain tolerance, patience, time and money — potentially thousands of euros, depending on the size of the area being treated. Argento has shared photos on Instagram showing her bandaged arms and hands, the latter finally restored to their natural color.

“I never imagined that, at 51, I would be erasing something that was such a defining part of me,” she says.

She also has a message for her followers: “That doesn’t mean young people shouldn’t get tattoos. But, well, just look at me.”

Argento thanks the surgeon helping her through the process: “I could only have faced something this agonizing with a friend like him. The results are excellent. You’re one of a kind.”

The physical pain is compounded by the emotional toll. “I thought my tattoos were part of me. But now … We started with my hands, which no longer have any ink on them, and we’re slowly working our way up. We’ve been at it for years.”

Argento has documented her journey with Reina, who, she says, “is doing something incredible with my body and my life. It’s also extremely painful psychologically.”

Reina praises his patient: “Asia is very strong. She has tattoos in some truly extraordinary places.”

Some details, perhaps, are best left to the imagination.

Argento has joined the growing ranks of celebrities having second thoughts about their tattoos. Stefano De Martino, for example, had only the tattoos dedicated to Belén Rodriguez removed. She did the same, erasing the design she had gotten in honor of her former partner. Others who have had tattoos removed include Loris Karius, who got rid of his neck tattoos, and Ema Stokholma, who opted to remove some of her ink. Argento, by contrast, has chosen the most radical approach: a complete reset.

Other celebrities have had tattoos removed for different reasons. Angelina Jolie and Megan Fox got rid of tributes to former partners, while Melissa Satta and Elisabetta Canalis used lasers to undo what they considered youthful mistakes. Johnny Depp took a more playful approach: his famous “Winona Forever,” a tribute to his former girlfriend Winona Ryder, was cleverly altered by a tattoo artist to read “Wino Forever.”

But this trend extends well beyond the world of celebrities. Tattoo removal is becoming an anti-trend among ordinary people, too — people who have grown up, changed their tastes and no longer identify with the tattoos they chose at 20 or thereabouts.

According to official data from Italy’s National Institute of Health, 12.8 percent of the Italian population has at least one tattoo, or about 7 million people. Other international surveys suggest a much higher figure, estimating that around 48 percent of Italians have at least one tattoo. Based on that estimate, Italy would rank first worldwide, followed by Sweden and the United States.

The return to natural skin is taking its cue from celebrities. People who regret their tattoos are increasingly turning to cosmetic surgeons in search of a solution: laser removal, a technology that is becoming more effective and precise as it advances.

An ex’s name remains the classic tattoo people want erased. Of the 2 million people seeking to remove reminders of their past, 61 percent made this particularly common mistake.

Poorly designed tattoos are the second most common reason for removal, accounting for 45 percent of the cases. Next come tattoos shared with former friends or relatives with whom people have since lost touch (41 percent), followed by tribal designs (33 percent).

For those who regret their ink, tattoo removal offers a second chance.

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