How to avoid chicken pox scars??

[natalieadw]

Both my kiddos have horrible cases of chicken pox right now (all over body, in nose, throat, inside of cheeks, eyelids, etc) and they both have really deep and big ones on their face. Is there anything I can do to help prevent scarring? Thanks in advance!

[Bea]

They won't scar so long as the scabs are left to fall off on their own. Underneath the scabs, at the moment, is a crater left by the blister. Clip their nails short, explain to them about not picking the scabs, try and minimise itching (calomine lotion?) and keep your fingers crossed.

Every adult I know had CP and only one or two has a facial pockmark from a picked scab and they are really tiny marks on an adult face.

[natalieadw]

Thanks for the reply mama! They are not picking them whatsoever, and their nails have just been cut. I'm just worried they'll scar because my daughter has some HUGE ones right around her mouth

[laohaire]

It may be weird but the most attractive people I know IRL have one scar somewhere on their faces. My DH, the guy I dated before him, the most popular/prettiest girl in middle school, etc., all had a scar somewhere. I've come to see them as attractive, actually.

Anyway, that's probably not helpful, but maybe it's to say that even if the "worst" happens and they get a scar, it won't interfere with their beauty. Even the one next to the mouth, one person I know has a scar next to his mouth and it's lovely.

[sprouthead]

i have a lot of CP scars on my face; i've had quite a few guys tell me i'm "hot" or "smokin'" or whatever, so it doesn't seem to be a big deal...

that being said, i always found aveeno lotions helpful for any itching i have because of the oatmeal, but i know they're not that "green".. but i think any oat-based product will still help itching, even drinking oatstraw tea! and rhutox was recommended by a arnp to me as a homeopathic treatment for cp- maybe something worth looking into for your little ones?

[Lilyoftheincas13]

Originally Posted by natalieadw

Thanks for the reply mama! They are not picking them whatsoever, and their nails have just been cut. I'm just worried they'll scar because my daughter has some HUGE ones right around her mouth

Even if they scar for some reason, if they're young, the scar will fade over time--probably completely. I had CP when I was 21 and the ONLY place I scarred was on my face. Same with my mom and niece. You can barely see it now, though, on any of us.

Ditto to the oatmeal.

[RosemaryS-F]

Keep them out of the sun until all pox are scabbed over and also do not get them wet.

[artemis80]

Yeah, keep them from scratching as much as you can, before and after scabbing. I had CP when I was six, and the biggest scar I got was from the first pock. It appeared a few days before the rest and we didn't know what it was so I scratched and scratched.

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

The only scars I have are the ones I scratched one on my neck, 2 on my tummy and 1 on my leg. When I got them my thinking was no one would see the ones on my legs since I wasnt allowed to wear shorts or short skirts back then and no one was going to see my tummy. So I scratched those to keep from scratching the ones that would show. The 1 on my neck was the first to appear and I clawed it badly it was a huge raised scare for many years it is now just a dimple.

[sarahkristin]

Aloe vera! My husband split his face open as a teenager, and put aloe vera on his wounds multiple times a day. When he went back for a check up a week later, the doctor said it was not possible that he was the same boy. You can't see much of a scar at all now, and this was a baaaad wound. I'm sure it would work wonders for chicken pox scars.

[hibana]

if they do end up with scars, massaging the area daily (once healed up) will help the scars fade with time.