Make my Scar disappear!

LarraO2530

I have a pretty large raised scar on my chest from a softball injury in high school, about 11 years ago. I have tried all the Mederma creams, and the Coco Butter dry oil with vitamin E and now I'm on the silicone strips. It never really bothered me, I don't mind telling the story of how I got the scar, until I began trying on bridal gowns, and it's all I see. I would love to wear the subtle sweetheart neckline of the dress that I'm pretty sure is THE one...but I can't get past this big ugly scar. I was wondering if any of you have had any success with any treatments for diminishing scars, or have any tips that I could try. The scar is raised, so it will be difficult to try to hide it with makeup for the day of....I've even consulted with a dermatologist to see about getting it "resurfaced" and was told that it's a cosmetic procedure, not covered by any insurance, and not guaranteed that it won't return, possibly worse. Any help/advice is greatly appreciated!

princessleia22

Raised scars are nearly impossible to completely hide. Really the best you can probably do would be to use makeup or whatever to get the coloring to blend with surrounding skin. Tanning can also sometimes help with the coloring. 

I have a scar on my leg. I've been doing laser hair removal on my legs and technician said it's very similar/same equipment as the scar removal laser treatments and could help reduce visibility of my scar.  After a year, I haven't noticed much difference in the scar, but it's also still early.  Laser treatments are a long process of several treatments (can take years, depending on scar), expensive and can be painful depending on treatment area.  I think the only quick treatment is cosmetic surgery where they basically cut out the scarred skin and let it re-heal.  Basically just cutting out the bad scar and hoping a better scar replaces it.

I also have a 13" long, very noticeable, scar on my back from multiple surgeries.  During my last surgery, the surgeon actually cut out the scar tissue from the previous surgeries to help get a better scar appearance (basically the same cosmetic surgery, but he was proactive and did it with the other surgery so insurance would cover it).  If he hadn't, the scar would have been very wide (it's still about an 1" wide, even after that) and very raised.  

While dress shopping, my mom was very concerned and mentioned it with every dress. I don't think I tried on any dresses that actually covered it.    Most wedding guests know about it anyway, and I don't mind talking about it to those that don't know.  I finally had to tell my mom (and myself) that I'm okay with it showing.  I decided that I really don't care.  It's my wedding day and I'm not going to let the scar ruin it for me.  Of course, it helps that it's on my back where I can't see it.  For several years I was really self conscious about my scar. But, then I got to a point where I was okay with it, and actually kind of proud of it. It's part of who I am.  The experiences that caused it really where a big factor in my life and helped make me who I am, and I'm proud of that. So, I don't care if is shows anymore, even on my wedding day.

And in reality, you will notice the scar MUCH more than anyone else will. If you cover it with makeup or whatever so the coloring is okay, chances are the nobody else will even notice that it's raised.  They will be focusing on your face, your smile, your dress, and all the other things that will be amazing about that day. And if you are worried about photos, those can be edited afterward to erase the scar. But, you also need to feel comfortable in your own body or you won't feel beautiful or confident on your wedding day.  You may want to try different dermatologists to see if a different doctor would have other options for you.  They all have different knowledge and some may know or offer more options that the other one didn't. 

 

LarraO2530

Wow, you've been through a lot, it's great that you are happy and feel beautiful, I'm trying to work on that also! Thank you sharing your story about your scars, you are right, I'll be the one who notices it the most. I have never let the scar bother me, I wear a bikini in the summer time, v-neck shirts etc...just something about being in the dresses made me sad because it's such a prominent scar. I do notice that in the summer when I get tan it is not as noticeable, and our wedding will be in May so I will be tanning before hand. My FI has told me many times that he doesn't care about my scar, it's part of who I am (like you said) and he thinks I'm beautiful no matter how big the scar is. I guess when I think about it, it's just part of how "not girly" I can be, even though I do have a softer side

dolewhipper

It sounds like a scar that has keloided, so I would suggest not getting it removed or touched by a scalpel as it will probably return and possibly get larger (happened to my aunt..started off as being 1/4 inch scar and turned into 1.5") Have you tried a concealer like Dermablend? That has helped with my acne scars and my aunts scar on her chest. You are right that you will notice it more than anyone else

LarraO2530

I've never really tried covering it with make-up, I've never really been too worried about it until now. It's a pretty obvious scar in just about every picture that I've started noticing when looking through albums, and it's pretty much become an obsession to try to get rid of it so when our big day comes our pictures will be flawless. I will have to give the Dermablend a try. I've considered looking for a different dress that has a high enough neckline to cover the scar, but I'm afraid I'll regret whichever choice I make...a dress I love but will hate looking at pics of because of my scar, or a dress that covers it but that I hate looking at because it's not what I wanted. I have 2 years, hopefully I can come up with something by then.

iloveu4ever

They do have special makeup for covering up tattoos and stuff. I have 2 scars too one is small but noticeable on my lip when I got hit by a car and another which is big and raised too from a camping accident.

amimhof

Have you tried silicone strips?  I have a scar on my left wrist that never bothered me much until I got engaged.  Just thinking about the pictures of my left hand with my beautiful rings and ugly scar was enough for me to look into getting rid of it.  I've been using scar away strips for a few weeks now and am impressed with the results.  My scar was raised and discolors before.  You can still see it, but now it's flat, and the color is closer to the rest of my skin, so it doesn't jump visually the way it used to.  Not perfect, but much better, and I still have a few weeks to go.

This is twhat I was using:

http://www.target.com/p/scaraway-professional-grade-silicone-scar-treatment-sheets-1-5-x-3-8-count/-/A-13107196?ref=tgt_adv_XSG10001&AFID=google_pla_df&LNM=13107196&CPNG=Health+Beauty&kpid=13107196&LID=17pgs&ci_src=17588969&ci_sku=13107196&kpid=13107196&gclid=CN6eq5etkMACFc1i7AodXkgAFA

LarraO2530

I have tried the silicone strips with no change in my scar ... I gave up on using them after 8 straight weeks of no change. I used them as directed for the allotted time each day, washed them and reused them accordingly and still nothing.... the last thing I haven't tried yet is the liquid scar-away stuff.