Up until he made the decision to get the ink removed from an astounding 95% of his body, he was the most tattooed guy in Brazil.
In an effort to get rid of more than two decadesâ worth of tattoos, Leandro de Souza has already had two laser sessions; the first was when he was just a young adolescent.
The 35-year-old photographer, who was converted to evangelicalism and now resides in the Brazilian border city of Bagé, close to Uruguay, decided to remove more than 170 tattoos.
âI did the first one when I was 13,â de Souza told Brazilian online news outlet G1. âThe first ones were very much about the idolatry of the time.â
Favorite rock bands of the time, Nirvana, Guns Nâ Roses, and Metallica, served as inspiration for the tattoos.
After divorcing his wife ten years ago, De Souzaâs life took a turn for the worst.
He experimented with cocaine for the first time and then mixed ecstasy, LSD, and alcohol for nine years after his separation from the mother of his ten-year-old kid.
âI couldnât stand the life I was living anymore,â he said. âI was an attraction at (events I attended), and it felt like a circus animal.â
When De Souza went to a shelter and was exposed to evangelism, he had a fresh perspective on life.
âThe first step in everything in life is to accept that you canât do it alone, that you are an addict, that you are a drug addict,â de Souza said.
âAnd I managed to do that, I entered the municipal shelter in BagĂ©. Within a week, there was a lady who referred me and started to evangelize me.âÂ
Two years ago, De Souza preached to âparents and children in homes that are in prisonsâ in an attempt to change the religion.
A Franco da Rocha, SĂŁo Paulo tattoo parlor, learned of de Souzaâs life-changing event on April 14, which also happened to be his birthday and one year without using drugs or cigarettes. He hasnât had an alcoholic beverage in more than three years.
Six additional sessions, lasting thirty to forty minutes each, are still required of De Souza. These are arranged every three months.
âIt hurts a lot more than doing it,â he said. âIt hurts three times more than doing it. Even with anesthesia, the process is very painful.â
