Scars Treatment Guide

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Scar tissue is weaker, rigid and much more sensitive to pain than normal and healthy skin tissue.  Thus, most scars experience chronic pain years after the initial injury.  In addition, the surrounding area of the scars can also experience the following discomforts:

• Nerve impingement
• Numbness
• Limited range of motion
• Loss of or limited flexibility
• Misalignment in posture
• Muscle atrophy
• Tissue hypoxia
• Increase in potential for future injury

Scar Traits

Scar formation varies from individual to individual.  However, they share some distinguishing attributes:

• They eventually harden and become rigid
• The skin tightens and limits the range of motion or causes deformity around the area
• The scar becomes dry and can easily open the wound if not managed properly. This is especially a problem for skin grafts since they do not produce oil or sweat

Scar Healing

A scar healing process consists of two stages:

• Immature – at this stage, the scar has just formed immediately after the wound heals.  The scar can still be painful, itchy and sensitive tissue.  It is typically reddish.
• Mature – the scar has completely healed the wound.  This happens after 3 to 18 months depending on the severity and depth of the wound.  The reddish color has faded.

At the immature stage, exercise, massage and heat application will have the greatest positive effect in reducing scar tissue.  While at the mature stage, a more vigorous approach is necessary to reduce scar tissue.

Massaging Scar Tissue

An effective and frequently used massage technique for reducing scar tissue is by using cross-fiber friction.  This technique is used by massage therapists to reduce the roughness of the tissue and soften any adhesions.  Pressure is applied with the tips of the fingers on the scar with a cross motion without sliding over the skin.

This massaging technique is easy to do and can be done by following these steps:

• Brace finger or thumb and apply a small amount of pressure to the scar
• Stroke the area with a circular or side-by-side motion without sliding over the scar
• As the area warms up and is more relaxed, you can go a little deeper

In general, by consistently massaging the scar tissue, the less possibility of developing long term discomforts.

Massage should not be performed over the area when the injury is still fresh, wait until the wound is fully knitted.  It is important that the initial approach is gentle to prevent from severing the injury.

Massaging over scar tissue can cause pain and should always work within the individual’s pain tolerance.  In time, the discomfort will ease up as excess scar tissue goes away and remaining scar tissue realigns.  Warming up the area will loosen up the tissue and lessen the pain.

Stretch marks are an ugly, unattractive and unwanted type of scar of the skin.  Women usually develop stretch marks during pregnancy.  Bodybuilders can also develop stretch marks by building muscles.   This type of scars looks like grooves in the skin.  They are so dreadful looking that people try tons of methods to get rid of them.

Stretch marks appear in most common places – in the abdomen, breasts, arms, underarm, thigh, hips and buttocks.  They are caused by tearing skin’s layer from rapid stretching from weight loss or weight gain.  The overstretched skin may results in stretch marks.

At first, stretch marks show up as reddish or purplish lines.  Their appearances do diminish and turn lighter overtime… but unfortunately, they do not disappear completely.

By following a few proper methods and treatments, the appearances of stretch marks can be diminished.

1. Improve your skin appearance and reduce the appearances of stretch marks by stimulating circulation of your skin by brushing it with a skin brusher while taking a shower
2. Keep your skin healthy and moist by massaging cocoa butter and Vitamin E oil into the skin and stretch marks.  Healthy and moist skin reduces the appearance of stretch marks
3. Replenish your skin by eating foods rich in vitamins A, C and E or by taking supplements in addition to your diet
4. Keep your skin’s elasticity by applying moisturizing cream over your stretch mark.  Prevent your skin from drying – especially during the dry and winter days, apply plenty and frequently moisturizers to your skin
5. Keep your body hydrated. Drink plenty of water per day to ensure your body and each cell of your body is properly functioning by keeping hydrated to remove toxins and keep your body clean and healthy
6. Increase the strength of your skin by eating foods high in essential fatty acids (such as fish), protein, citrus foods, nuts and vegetables.  Your skin will be tighter smoother and healthier
7. Repair damaged skin with herbal plant like Aloe vera .  Aloe vera contains plant collagen which will help the dermal layer and stimulate the skin elasticity to help reduce scars and stretch marks
8. Help your skin breath by exfoliating once in a while to get rid of dead skin cells from the surface to stimulate the grow of the skin underneath and improve the appearance of your skin and stretch marks

Remember, it takes time to reduce the appearance of stretch marks.  There is no miracle process or overnight process.  The best you can do is to follow a regular procedure and by keeping it simple.

Nobody likes to have scars.  Especially, facial scars.  They can be more frustrating than others because you see them every time you look in the mirror. Facial scars are daily reminders of injury or accident that cause the facial scarring.

If it was that easy, the easiest solution is to prevent facial scarring.  However, sometimes that’s unpreventable.

The skin of your face is a very sensitive part of your body.  It can be prone to scarring.  And good care should be taken to prevent injuries or damages.

It’s also a good idea to protect it from environmental factors such as sun, wind and even freezing temperatures.  Good hygiene can go a long way to prevent facial scarring.  Keep your face clean and moist.  Protect it from the sun and from harsh weather.

Like me, you probably have some kind of scars on your face.  Luckily, you have options to reduce or eliminate the appearance of the scars.

Use lotions, creams or oils with Vitamin E or aloe vera.  These 2 ingredients help stimulate the production of new and healthy skin cells.

If you have severe facial scarring, your doctor may prescribe something more powerful to help your condition.  They can also recommend other types of procedures such as dermabrasion or collagen injections to minimize or get rid of your scars.

Dermabrasion is a procedure that removes the top or outer layer of the skin, allowing new, smooth and healthy skin cells from below to replace it.  This is particularly effective for raised scars.

Collagen injections promote the production of collagen.  Collagen is a protein that contributes to the skin’s elasticity, which keeps the skin flexible and younger looking.

Depending on the facial scarring you have, there are always many options to treat them.  The best way to find what works is to try.   One treatment may work for someone but not for you.  You might need to try several treatments before finding the best one that will reduce or eliminate your facial scars.

There is an essential oil used 5,000 years ago by the ancient Egyptians that can be used for scars treatment.  Traces of it were even found in King’s Tut tomb.

I’m talking about Frankincense.

Frankincense is one of the essential oils that can really calm and comfort the entire body and mind. It alleviates all the aches and pains, clears the lungs and works as a skin tonic that can treat scars.

Physical Properties

Frankincense is extracted from resin obtained from the Boswellia tree.  Deep incisions are made in the tree trunk and by slashing the bark.  Frankincense exudes as a milky juice and hardens on exposure with the air.  An oleo gum resin is the result.

The oil is then extracted via steam distilling the resin.

The oil has a pleasant woody, spicy, haunting smell – with a nice little touch of camphor.   It looks pale yellowish-greenish in color.

Usage

Frankincense oil has been used as an antiseptic, astringent, carminative, cicatrizing, digestive, diuretic, sedative, tonic, uterine, vulnerary and expectorant.

It is a favorite in aromatherapy used to aid digestion and keep healthy skin.  It has been used for hundreds of years for treating wounds, strengthening female hormone system and treating arthritis.

In ancient time, frankincense was generally used to make incense. The ancient Greeks and Romans used it to perfume their homes.  It was used in the first century as an antidote to hemlock poisoning.  In the tenth century, Iranians used it to cure vomiting, diarrhea, fever and tumors.  The Chinese still used it today to treat leprosy, gonorrhea and digestive ailments.

Frankincense was offered to the gods by the ancient Egyptians.  They also used it as a rejuvenating face mask and to fumigate the sick to banish evil spirits.  They grounded charred resin into a powder form called kohl. Kohl was used to draw the typical black eyeliner seen on figures in Egyptian art.

This essential oil has a wondrous calming effect on the mind.  It helps create inner peace.  It helps sooth the respiratory and urinary tract.  It relieves pain linked to rheumatism and muscle pain, and has a rejuvenating, balancing and healing action on the skin.

It is excellent to use when meditating. It helps calm anxiety.  It calms the mind to allow slowing and deepening breathing.

For the respiratory tract, it opens up and clears the lungs and helps with shortness of breath, asthma, bronchitis, laryngitis, coughs and colds.

For the Skin

Also, it is used to rejuvenate aging skin. It is used as a skin tonic.  It is effective with sores carbuncles, wounds, scars and skin inflammation.  For its many usages, it’s a great oil to apply to wounds and treat old scars.

Frankincense oil can be added to a base cream or lotion.  It will strengthen skin tone.  It will also reduce oily skin, rejuvenating skin while helping wounds to heal better.

As you can see, this oil can do wonder for the skin.  By toning the skin and helping wounds heal, its properties make it a great scar treatment natural remedy.

Scars treatment can virtually vanish the appearance of scars in just a matter of days.  Scar removal used to require surgeries or expensive procedures, which all had negative side effects.  Now, scars are treatable with different proven remedies and products found at the store or even at home.

While some scars will diminish with time, most scars will be left visible… but the appearance can be minimized if they are treated.

With a proper scar treatment procedure, nearly any scar can be faded – leaving only almost slightly unnoticeable remaining traces. The appearance of scars from the body can be minimized even if the scars have been there for years.

For example, here are some benefits with the proper scars treatment…

• Achieve the same results of expensive medical procedures at a small fraction of the cost
• Breaks down the tissues and restores the elasticity of the skin
• Maintains a healthy and glowing skin
• Reduces the redness and visibility of deep and long scars within days

Currently, there are products aimed specifically in reducing and minimizing the appearance of scars. Results for minimizing scar appearances are best when the scars are new. Older scars may take longer.

Even if a scar is still noticeable, there are various ways to minimize or conceal its appearance.

There are many scars treatment available.  Here are some treatments to get rid of scars of any types – burn scars, acne scars, keloid scars and surgery scars

• Treat new wounds to lessen the severity of scars. Keep wounds clean and covered to protect them from being infected. Infection will lead to form severe scars.  Apply antibiotic cream or ointment designed to reduce scars.  Avoid picking at scabs so it won’t mess with the healing process.  Protect the scar from the sun and keep moisturizing the scar once the wound has healed.
• Massaging the scar can help minimize scars and prevent the buildup of scar tissue.  Gentle massage will stimulate circulation to the scar and skin area.  It will help speed up the healing process and ensure good skin elasticity.  Gently rub moisturizer and vitamin E to scars.  Moisturizing the scar will keep it soft and smooth.
• Patches and cream can be used to treat older scars.  They are available at most drug stores.  They are worn over the scars and can take a few weeks to see results.
• Exfoliating, moisturizing and cleaning the skin will keep it healthy.  A healthy skin will heal faster and will look better.

Some scars will require something a bit more intrusive, like surgical scar removal, dermabrasion, laser resurfacing, steroid injections or other medical procedure.  For that, a dermatologist or medical professional should be consulted for the right treatment and professional.

As you can see, scars treatment is a gradual process.  It takes time.  Some scars will take more time to minimize its appearance.  Severe scars like surgical scars will not go away but their appearance can be minimized.

Repairing scar damaged skin doesn’t have to take a lot of time.

You can take a few simple steps right now to treat and remove scars.  These steps are cheap and will save you money before seeking professional help.

Here are 4 ways to reduce the time your skin needs to heal and remove scar:

1. Keep your skin healthy to speed up the healing process.  It will save you money and minimize and even remove scars.  Alcohol impairs the skin ability to generate new skin and blood cells during an injury.  Drink plenty of water.  It will keep you hydrated and improves circulation which will improve the skin’s scar repair process.
2. Use lemon juice to lighten dark scars.  Dab a cotton ball with lemon juice and apply to scar for ten minutes and rinse with cool water.
3. Smooth your scar with a home made microdermabrasion treatment.  Mix one teaspoon of baking soda with two teaspoons of lukewarm water.  Mix and gently rub paste on scars for 1 to 2 minutes and rinse.
4. Zinc helps the skin to rebuild by stimulating keratinocytes cells.  These cells make keratin to help repair and regenerate the skin.  Zinc has antioxidant properties to help reduce free radicals and fight bacterias to expedite the healing process.  Create a paste of zinc by crushing zinc supplement and mixing it with a teaspoon of basic moisturizer.  Gently apply paste over scar 2-3 times a day.

You can find these steps to be very cheap and easy to do.  Once you do this a few times, it will be a quick and efficient.  Enjoy healthy skin while treating your scars.

Here are some natural remedies you can prepare for scars treatment:

• Apply a paste of sandalwood (chandan) powder with black gram (masoor) dal on scar and let it sit overnight.  Wash off with cold water the next day.  This is a very useful home remedies for scar
• Make a sandalwood paste with rose water and apply on scars. Keep it overnight and wash it with cold water the next day
• Prepare  a decoction by boiling 1 liter of water and adding 1 teaspoon of Methi seeds for a couple of minutes.  Apply on skin and scars.  It is one of the best home remedies to help with dryness, acne, wrinkles and scars.  It’s also and excellent face wash and cleanser
• Mixing one tablespoon of fuller’s earth and one teaspoon of lime juice.  Add rosewater until a paste forms.  Gentle rub on face and scars.  Let it dry and apply second coat again.  Leave it for 7 minutes and wash with cold water
• Make a thick paste with black seeds of Gulbaaz plant.  Cut the seeds and remove the white portion and mix it with water.  Apply paste over fresh scars, pimple marks and acne.  Let it dry on skin and fade away slowly.  This is a very useful home remedies for fresh scars
• Apply almond and grape seed oil on skin.  This is also very useful home remedy for scars
• Take a few mint leaves and crush them.  Extract its juices with a muslin cloth and apply on face.  It’s a good remedy for spots and blemishes
• Use Neem to treat of all sorts of skin problems. It contains Nimbidol and Gedunin, which have very good fungicidal properties

Here are some easy way to help you heal your scars and have healthy looking skin:

• Get a good nigh sleep every night.  Don’t oversleep.  About 6-9 hours of sleep is normal depending on the individual.
• Avoid all strains and control stress.  Follow the principles of good health since these are essential for overall health
• Avoid or minimize consumption of rich foods and excessive amounts of sugar.  Choose a sensible and well balanced diet with plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables
• Wash your face with lukewarm salty water (sea salt and water) in the morning and at night.  Soap can dry your skin and may worsen acne problem.  Salty water helps remove oils without drying your skin
• Drink plenty of water and fruit juices.  Avoid sweetened drinks and soft drinks

Here are some quick and easy scars treatment you can do at home:

• To lighten the scars of acne, rub ice cubes on the face for 10-15 minutes to tighten the pores, reduce inflammation and burning sensation on the skin
• Remove scars from your face by putting a mask of egg whites all over your face
• Tighten the skin’s pore by applying cucumber juice on the face for 15 minutes and washing  it off
• Reduce open pores and blackhead by treating oily skin to prevent scarring by cutting a tomato in half and rubbing on the skin.  Leave it for 15 minutes and wash it off with water
• Keep scars and skin healthy and clear by rubbing a fresh cut lemon
• For scar treatment mash a ripe peeled banana. Apply the pulp on the face for 10 minutes. Wash it off.
• Heal scars by applying Aloe Vera juice twice a day
• Remove scars by gently rubbing smashed raw garlic on the affected skin several times a day
• Heal skin wounds, surgical incisions, burns, bruises, scars and stretch mark by applying topically Vitamin K.  Good sources for Vitamin K are found in green leafy vegetables, such as spinach, green cabbage, kale,  turnip greens and broccoli.  It is also found in  tomatoes, liver, lean meats and dairy products

There are many standard medical scars treatment – none of them works perfectly and most are expensive.

Some of these treatments include:

• Intralesional steroid injections – fairly effective.  Side effects include hypopigmentation, atrophy and telangiectasias and thinning of the scar tissue
• Cryotherapy – used in combination with steroid injection
• Dermabrasion – used to scrape off the outer layers of the skin to encourage new skin growth 
• Radiotherapy – used superficial and in low dose.  Usually effective but only used in extreme cases due to the long-term side effects of radiation
• Surgery – cosmetic surgical procedure.  Very invasive and can make the scars worse
• Pressure garments  – used for burn scars covering a large area and only effective on recent scars

These treatments can offer some relief, but they are invasive and sometimes dangerous.

Nature’s Solution to Scarring

Good News!

There are natural and safe alternative therapies for treating scars.  They can help prevent scar formation and drastically reduce the appearance of existing scars.

Here are some natural substances that appear to be effective treating scars:

• Onion Extract –  a good anti-inflammatory herb which inhibits over-producing collagen in a scar.  It helps reducing the amount of collagen deposited into the scar  
• Paste of sandalwood powder with rose water works effectively in removing scars.  Apply paste on scars in the night and wash it in the morning
• Lavender oil – very effective when scars are fresh.  Apply to scars in the morning and evening
• Lemon juice – helps reduce scars slowly but certainly
• Water – drinking plenty of water will keep skin hydrated and healthy

Serious keloid and hypertrophic scars cannot be eliminated.  Not even with surgery or radiotherapy.  However, with proper care, the scar appearance can be reduced and improved – especially if natural treatments are applied as soon as the injury occurs.