We would like to thank Payton for donating designs used on the PLD Ink X Lonely Cowboy collaboration tee, available now (CLICK HERE). Because of her donation and desire to help the community, we are able to continue funding our Lonely Cowboy Scholarships - offered in high schools across the US, awarded to students interested in mental health education.
PLD INK (Payton DiGangi) Q+A:
Taking care of your own mental health is important because it is essential for your overall health and quality of life. Without taking care of your mental well being, you are putting yourself at a higher risk of stress, low energy, and lower physical and emotional wellbeing. For me personally, taking care of my mental health allows me to acknowledge things within myself I need to work on, in order to be a better person for myself and others.
Listening to my body, and realizing how my body is reacting to stress and where (still working on that). Taking a break from social media, or my phone in general. Journaling when I can find time, writing down thoughts, emotions, and ideas can help to get things off your mind and onto paper. Or losing your thoughts into a good book, either one you can learn from or just enjoy in general.
Don’t worry about what everyone will think of you, or decisions you make. Allow yourself to be authentic and the right people will fall into your life, or fall out. Trust yourself.
The education system specifically needs to do better for the mental health of males in my eyes. Although education on mental health is important for everyone, for the longest time it has always been frowned upon for boys/men to over-show emotion. I feel like a lot of males struggle with mental health and the ability to show emotion which in turn causes worsened mental health because it is not “manly” to do so. Something as powerful as the education system can definitely shed light onto this topic.
Just because you’re heavily tattooed doesn't mean you are a criminal, rebel, misfit, or uneducated. For years I feel like people who have a lot of tattoos are directly linked to negativity from society, but everyone has a story and some people just enjoy a good piece of art on their body and there's nothing more to it.
Bring something new to the table! Don’t be afraid to step outside the box, art is art. Also, don't give up. It sounds cliche, but tattooing is a challenging art form and takes a lot of practice, do your research and take your time.
As someone who grew up thinking “if I were to get a tattoo it has to have meaning” I'm glad I have finally reached a point where that does not matter so much to me anymore. I think a tattoo has meaning regardless if you take notice of it or not, whether that's the time in your life you’re getting it, where you're getting it (as in shop, city, state, etc.), or what inspired you to get it. So, I don’t believe your tattoos have to have meaning because regardless, it will at the end of the day they will for some reason or another.
Follow Payton on IG and Tik Tok @pld.ink to see more of her work! 