I have several tattoos...

I'm not sure the two are directly related, but: I did only start self harming after I started getting tattoos. One thing that struck me about the tattooing process is that I liked the pain in a weird kind of way. A considerable amount of time later, my reaction to one particular distressing event was to try and get over it by getting a tattoo (I suppose a way of journalling it, externalising the pain, and accepting it.) I knew I couldn't go get a tattoo every time I felt bad, and perhaps this contributed to my feeling compelled to cut... to try and get that same 'rush'... though I'm not sure I really made a conscious decision to self harm, it just happened - very small scalpel cuts at first, progressing to larger knife cuts that scarred more noticably - and that, ironically, I'm considering attempting to cover up/disguise with another tattoo someday, to represent getting over this difficult chapter in my life.

Though I used a tattoo to externalise the pain that one time, I can't say that if I'd never got tattooed I would never have self harmed. I think it's just the way things worked out for me.

I don't think getting tattoos would necessarily push you back into cutting -- in fact, I recently got a tattoo to symbolise getting rid of negative feelings, and every time I feel tempted to hurt myself, I look at the tattoo and what it represents, and find it easier to quash the urge (only a couple of minor relapses since.)

A friend of mine confided that he used to self harm, but actually stopped when he started getting tattoos. He found the process helpful in recovery. He has a back piece that he adds to once a year.

A complicated question, to which I've given a complicated answer... sorry if it's not much help! I guess in the end it depends on your personal circumstance, views, and motivations.