scar
(n):
a
mark left on the skin or within body tissue where a wound, burn, or sore was
present;
a
lasting effect of grief, fear or other emotion left on a person’s character
by
a traumatic experience.
Some people see their scars as a
reminder of a funny story or a crazy adventure. For others, scars are a
reminder of a painful past, a bad fall, or a difficult illness. That's why some
keep their ‘scar stories’ to themselves instead of rehashing the painful truth
each time someone asks about it. I actually used to have a bit of fun by giving
weird responses to persons who would ask about the scar on my neck from my
thyroid surgery. Rather than discuss it, I've given outlandish responses like:
“I was in a gang fight”.
This wasn't my first surgery, and so I
knew I had a tendency to have bad scarring (or develop keloids), so when my
scar started growing I wasn't particularly surprised, but I certainly was
determined to minimize the appearance of it as much as possible. In the earlier
months, right after the surgery, I would use silicone strips/plasters on my
neck to flatten the keloid (which didn't help much by the way). Later, I began massaging
it with my handmade cocoa butter and shea butter cream (cocoa shea skin
smoothie) which, based on my progress pics, was beginning to fade the scar
considerably.
One afternoon late last year, I went
to the barber shop with my mom. While I was sitting waiting on her to get her
haircut, another lady approached me and asked me about my scar. I noticed that her
thyroid was very enlarged. We had a great conversation about the exhaustion,
the weight gain, the frustration of having her hair thin out, the frightening
feeling of being choked by your enlarged thyroid while trying to sleep. We
discussed treatment options and my experience with my physician, versus what
she felt was inadequate treatment by her doctor.
That encounter with that lady got me
thinking … if she hadn’t seen my scar we would not have had that conversation. I
decided at that time to stop working on my scar; I would be leaving the mark on
my neck. It’s a bit less noticeable now, but you can still see it, and that’s
fine. I don't mind explaining to people why I have it. I’ve gotten to the point
where my scars no longer make me self-conscious, but I’m realizing more and
more that they can be a powerful tool in raising the level of consciousness in
people I meet every day. I have even had persons who noticed the scar on one of
my Facebook pictures and have asked me questions about thyroid dysfunction. It’s
a conversation starter, but maybe thyroid disease IS something that more people
should be talking about, so I’m okay with that.
Instead of a reminder of a tough period
in your life, try to think of your scars, whether physical or emotional, as marks
of triumph over that difficult situation. More importantly think of it as
a possible way to help someone else who may need help in dealing with a similar
issue.
[July
is thyroid disease awareness month at Just Bee You! Beauty products. Be sure to
come back for more posts on this issue and visit our Facebook Page for even
more info on the thyroid and thyroid dysfunction.]
