'Tattoos don't define the person' Son's emotional defence of his mum's tattoos goes viral

'She will wake up at the same time everyday and save a life'

A devoted son has taken to social media to vent his frustrations at peoples' perceptions of his mother's tattoos – and sparked a fierce debate about professionalism.

Jordan Miller's mum, Misti, is a nurse in their home state of Ohio. She's performed her role diligently and saved many lives, says Jordan.

But after a conversation about some hospitals conservative attitudes toward her body art, Jordan was left baffled.

'My mom has more tattoos than I can count and it has never, ever affected her work ethic,' he explains in an emotional Facebook post, which has since gone viral with more than 115k shares.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10209827863594597&set=a.1088708739260.2014121.1272711621&type=3&theater

'I've seen my mom pull a lady out of a car before it fills with smoke and she suffocates. I've seen her do stitches on an injured person on the side of the road following a car accident.'

He continues: 'I've seen her come home after a 12-hour shift, dead tired after dealing with an abusive patient all day, and get back up and do it again the next day. She's come home after holding a baby in her hands and watching it take their last breath. She's saved a drug addicts life after overdosing in the hospital bed.' 'Tattoos don't define the person. She will wake up at the same time everyday and save a life.'

Conflicting work schedules mean Jordan and Misti don't get to spend that much time together – another reason he is so admiring of her dedication.

Not all of the comments on Jordan's post have been positive, with one saying: 'I respect her doing her job so well, but have reservations about why she wants to defile her own body. Does that fill a void in her mind about her self worth? Sad.'

However, the majority of messages were ones of solidarity and support, particularly from fellow healthcare professionals.

'Well spoken!' said one commenter. 'I myself have no tattoos but actually enjoying seeing them as well as a lot of patients that I have taken care of, on some patients they are a focal point for calming and distracting of behaviors.'

Another added: 'One of our nurses had her hair dyed different shades of blue & purple. She always looked nice. Recently, they changed our dress code and said that hair can only be natural colors. The patients all loved her hair and were upset when they found out why she had to change it!'

The family have been overwhelmed by the response, with Misti writing on her own page: 'I am absolutely blown away by the support for tattoos on nurses that my son wrote.'

'If I save one life by a conversation, my artwork is well worth wearing. Thanks son for the love and support for your momma and her ink work!'

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