The Emotional Effects of Scarring

Scars go much deeper than the skin. They can come with traumatizing memories that are even harder to deal with than the resulting scarred skin. If you have suffered a bad scar, whether in a car accident, in a fire or even as a result of severe acne that led to bullying in school, you know just how devastating those raised and discolored areas can be.

Numerous studies have shown that scar tissue can result in social, emotional, and psychological effects, impacting people in two main ways: by prompting a physical trigger that reminds people of the events that surround the injury and by developing new emotional consequences of coping with a physical scar that impacts appearance. 

Some of the common emotional effects of scarring include:

  • Fear
  • Anger
  • Insecurity
  • Worry
  • Pain
  • Guilt 
  • Disgust
  • Sadness

Trauma, particularly trauma that happens to a child during critical emotional or physical development stages, can lead to a lifetime of insecurity, fear, anger and lack of self-confidence.

Although scars don’t necessary pose a health risk, people who have bad scars can experience physical discomfort, to be sure, but even more so, they can experience aesthetic, social and psychological distress. This is because such lesions are cosmetically-disfiguring, even leading to depression, anxiety and difficulties with social interaction.

The physical appearance of some scars may continue to cause problems, as they can become red and raised, even growing past the wound boundaries or taking several years to fade. For many, a scar is a constant reminder of the traumatic event that brought it on, resulting in poor self-esteem and distress in everyday situations with an overall diminished quality of life.

While scarring and the trauma that comes with it can be life-altering, you don’t have to let it consume you. There are ways of coping and employing management techniques to lessen the effects over time. Therapy is certainly a valid option, especially in particularly traumatic situations.

There are some steps you can take to lessen the appearance of scars, in an effort to lessen the emotional impact. Treatments include scar removal surgery, steroid injections, skin grafts, excision, dermabrasion, collagen, fillers, or silicone sheets that are designed to flatten the scar, says WebMD

Smaller keloids can be dealt with using cryotherapy, or you can use pressure treatment or gel pads with silicone. Over-the-counter or prescription creams, ointments, or gels may also work. Scarfade is one product in particular that has been proven to work. It’s comprised of a silicone micro-membrane, to moisturize without skin maceration. It’s easily applied, it dries quickly and it leaves no sticky residue behind. Best part is, you don’t even need a prescription. 

You don’t have to be the victim of scars any longer. Something as simple as a silicone gel can fade your scars and help you get ready to face the world again.