Face Tattoo After First Date Sounds Scary, Science Explains ‘Overly Attached Girlfriend’

The girl with a face tattoo after a first date has become an international sensation after she allowed her ink-loving boyfriend to cover her face near-entirely with (of course) his own name, but the woman making headlines may have acted out of biological impulse rather than scary devotion. And perhaps scary devotion. But also science.

It should be noted the “face tattoo after a first date” story is not without a few caveats. First and foremost, it’s not the first time the ink artist behind the story has been famous worldwide for questionably ethical behavior. He first came to fame for another shady face tattoo tale and one that wound up not checking out.

(The man, Ruslan Tourmaniantz, tattooed dozens of stars across the face of another girl who initially claimed to be sleeping for the inking before recanting.)

While Tourmaniantz may be addicted to flash-infamy, the face tattoo after a “first date” also occurred after an internet relationship — girlfriend (or fiancee) Lesyla, last name not given, met Tourmaniantz in January, and the pair quickly became smitten. Obviously.

Call it limerence or “new relationship energy,” but science has a convenient explanation for why a face tattoo on a first date is the kind of activity that makes sense in the haze of newfound love.

ScienceWorldReport cites oxytocin — a powerful bonding hormone also present during events like sex, breastfeeding and childbirth — as an influential factor in “overly attached girlfriend” behavior:

“Researchers have measured levels of oxytocin, a hormone involved in mother and infant bonding, in people who had recently begun relationships.”

“Revisiting the couples six months later, those with higher levels of oxytocin tended to still be together, while the others were not … This hormone can play an important role in the initial stages of romantic attachments, according to studies.”

Of course, levels of oxytocin level out in a few months, but the face tattoo after the first date remains — do you think that Lesyla will regret her decision after the love and the fame wear off?