Scars are always a result of trauma or surgery and scar tissue can cause pain and discomfort due to itching, pulling and tugging sensations as well as a reduction in your range of movement. But introducing a simple daily scar care routine can banish scar pain for good.
Every scar tells a story. A journey that the person has been on, and experiences that won’t ever be forgotten by them or their loved ones.
Once healed, some people choose to let their scars be; some use cosmetic surgery to alter the appearance; and some choose tattoos to cover them up, or to enhance them… But aside from aesthetics, how many people realise the physical restrictions that scars can create?
Scars are always a result of trauma or surgery to the tissue. In an emergency situation, once the initial threat has been handled (quite rightly), the wound is stitched together with little attention paid to the tissues that have been cut, the direction in which they have been cut in and the long-term effects of the scar on the patient’s recovery and mobility. It’s rare to be given any scar care advice post-surgery, but by understanding how scar tissue is formed and by integrating a few simple steps into your day-to-day routine, you could improve the sensations and movement in your scar tissue within just a few weeks.
Do you remember the skeleton dance song: “Your leg bone is connected to your hip bone”? Well, your fascia is even more interconnected with your bones, your muscles, your tendons, and your organs.
Fascia is the connective tissue that surrounds your muscles, tendons and joints – and during trauma or surgery, it’s the fascia around our tissues, muscles and skin that gets damaged. Think of clingfilm and how wet sheets of clingfilm will glide over each other – this represents ‘normal’ tissue. Now imagine dry clingfilm and how it gets stuck together and has to be peeled off the bottom layer – this is scar tissue.
For scars caused through surgery, there will be lots of layers of dry clingfilm on top of each other, which will begin to pull the tissues in the direction of the point of anchor (the scar). Now imagine a fitted bedsheet (this is your whole body). If you grip one bit of the fitted bedsheet, imagine how the rest of the corners and the rest of the sheet go tight. This is what happens when you have recovered from your surgery. Your scar is the fist gripping, and the corners are your limbs and your torso.
For example… If you had a Caesarean Section two years ago and haven’t done any scar massage from 12 weeks, you may have a mum pouch. It may feel uncomfortable going to the toilet, having sex and during your periods. Your scar is likely to have adhered to the visceral structures (organs) underneath. Because of this anterior (front) facial pull you may feel restricted when reaching up, playing catch with your child, lying on your front and generally with any stretching motion.
The Scar Wand effectively unsticks the clingfilm-like layers that have stuck to each other and therefore releases the grip on the bedsheet resulting in increased mobility through the limbs and the torso. This should help you feel more mobile from a whole-body perspective.
The fascia is an incredible structure and it will take time and a little TLC to recover after it’s been cut through during trauma and surgery. With just a small amount of scar massage each day, you’ll soon find that day-to-day tasks are made easier and that you feel better.
Other things that can help with your scar mobility is to stay well hydrated and keep moving. By moving, I mean gentle regular full body stretching to keep the ‘wet clingfilm sheets’ gliding over one another. You’ll soon find things get easier once you have released the grip on the bedsheet.