How to minimise scars on DS’s back?

[TattiePants]

DS was assaulted at the end of last year and part of the assault was being whipped with a leather belt across his back. At the time he had raised red welts but after about a week they stopped hurting and I hadn’t checked them for some time. Yesterday he asked me to look at something on his back and the whip marks are still very visible. Is there anything we can use to try to get the scarring to disappear?

Would Bio Oil work for this? Your poor DS.

How awful! How old is he?

Silicone gel is what he needs. It takes months to work and you only need a tiny, tiny amount. They also come in strips- but IMO are harder to position and leave on, whereas gel can be applied and forgotten about. Available online or from larger pharmacies.

I forgot about Bio Oil, I remember using it for pregnancy stretch marks. I’ll get some silicone gel too. As an added complication, he has sensory processing disorder so some textures might be an automatic no.

He’s 16 and unfortunately it happened in school - a place he should feel safe. He actually dealt with the aftermath much better than me.

Your poor boy. I hope he’s ok.

There’s a lot of treatments for scarring, I would start by speaking to a pharmacist and they’ll be able to advise. Would he feel comfortable showing them to a pharmacist? I’d also consider seeing a GP depending on what the pharmacist says, and possibly seeing if they’ll refer to a dermatologist. A friend of mine had laser treatment for some prominent scarring and it helped a lot. There’s lots available.

Your poor DS, and how awful for you 💐 They will fade in time, but there are some other options to move things along if he’s feeling self conscious.

NHS advice

That’s horrendous OP, I hope the bastards that did it to him were dealt with. I hope you’re ok too.

Thanks for the suggestions. We’ll give some a try and see what texture he prefers.

His school, the police and even social services were involved and they all took it very seriously and we got lots of support. Fortunately the worst boy (the one that whipped him) is gone from school.

I have a friend with self harm scars. They are v specific about bio oil use and always maintain it's used by being applied with cotton wool like an ointment minimally. Sloshing it on won't help.

What happened to your son is beyond horrendous and I imagine every poster who reads the op will think about it for a long time afterward.

Op I imagine I would be like you and struggle to cope when my child was able to. I wish you both the absolute best x

I second the BioOil recommendation, have used successfully on scars an stretch marks.

And like a PP mentioned, I don't think I'll forget reading this thread for quite some time. My heart goes out to your poor DS x

Bio oil is great, not the same but my ds has stretch marks on his back I put cocoa butter on them alot and they have faded now. Your poor ds, that's an awful thing to happen and for you as well, you think they are safe at school.