It’s been five and a half weeks since the accident. While Doc fixes the inside of my mouth, I’ve decided to focus on the outside, namely my upper lip. You can see in the photo below, I still have quite a fat lip and that jaggedy scar is what remains of the deepest cut you can get. Basically, I ripped my lip all the way through in two places. So, the scar continues on the inside of my mouth and loops around in a U shape back out again…Ugh!
Unretouched photo of my lip 5 weeks and 3 days after the Fall
So, how do I fix it naturally? Well, since I got home from the hospital I have been rubbing aloe and organic lavender oil on it at least twice a day. Most people know about using aloe vera to soothe burns but may not realize that aloe has swelling reduction and skin rebuilding properties. Lavender oil, according to herbalist Brigitte Mars, “is an essential oil that is antiseptic and anti-inflammatory. It can be applied topically to wounds, burns, bruises, insect bites and blisters. Lavender reduces the risk of infection, reduces pain and stimulates skin regeneration. When inhaled it has a calming effect on the nervous system and gives comfort during times of trauma.”
My mom has offered several times to buy Mederma for me. An offer I appreciated but being a nature gal, I wanted to find out what was in Mederma before I tried it. It turns out that the active ingredient is an onion extract. There is much debate about whether Mederma is effective or not. However, I did learn that rubbing onion on a scar may well work on its’ own. Onion is believed to inhibit the over-production of collagen thus suppressing the formation of scar tissue and is an also an anti-inflammatory. So, I have added rubbing raw onion on my scar to my routine. (Smelly? Perhaps… but after being on a liquid diet for 5 and a half weeks, I kind of like it.)
Doc suggested I massage my fat lip to keep scar tissue from forming and because he thought felt a salivary gland dropping down. (Weird, right? I had no idea we have secondary salivary glands in our lips either! ) Anyway, I had already been using coconut oil to keep my lips soft and chap-free. So, now it is massage oil as well. Coconut oil is also good to use on scars because it may prevent and reverse free radical damage.
I ordered Vitamin E oil and Shea Butter too. Vitamin E is good for skin because it increases circulation and is also a very effective anti-oxidant against free radicals. Shea Butter is a good source of Vitamin E and Vitamin A. Shea Butter is also an incredible emollient that will moisturize your skin and make it silky soft. Keeping the skin soft is important because the last thing you want is for damaged skin; is for it to get dry, leaving it even more vulnerable to further damage. To that end, I have also been wearing a hat outside to protect my face from the sun, to avoid it getting dried out or burned.
So, what are your tips for treating scars and damaged skin? I would love to read them. Please share!
Love and Many Blessings,
Cynthia
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Interesting stuff. I suffer more from emotional scars. Not sure they can be repaired with an onion.
Thanks Al! I am not sure about the onion’s emotional curing abilities. I’ll have to do some research. 😉
I’m glad your continuing to heal… I just got some Lavender Essential Oils and knew about some healing properties but not all you mentioned. I make a lotion of Coconut Oil with some Aloe Vera gel & a little bit of Vitamin E oil. I use it at least twice a day all over my face… I love the way it smells. I use it to wash my face and remove makeup… The healing properties are good for wrinkles too! 😉
Hi Jodi, thank you so much! That’s a great idea for making you’re own moisturizer/make up remover. …all very healing, safe ingredients.
Vitamin E is very good, but not at the very beginning because it retards the healing….which in the long term IS very good (scar tissue). I knew a woman that had gone through a glass coffee table as a 2 year old. It took her nose off. She had NO scar at all because her mom rubbed vitamin E into it several times a day. The massage is essential for smoothing the scar down and inhibiting scar tissue. I had many discussions with the Plastic Surgeons about the scars and they all concurred that keeping it flat helps, too. Tape or a silicon based scar treatment can do that. You might ask your Dr. if, in addition to all the wonderful things that you are doing, tape might help.
Thank you for the great information Michelle!
I was concerned to hear u are using lavender which actually produces scar tissue good for indented scars only. I had a cold sore & used lavender to prevent scar but I when too overboard & ended up with a huge lump of scar tissue. It healed after six months with some kelo-kote/coco butter/and a Nivea lip balm with coq10. My daughter was in car accident and has lump and scar on lip & lost 2 teeth. Her dentist suffered similar accident & recommended vitamin e capsule 2x a day her lump has began to shrink but u must use pure not synthetic 1000iu and up also I have been using emu lipbalm from Montana emu oil company and has helped with the scar from stitches. I’m going to try kelokote on her next and see how it helps I ran out but need to order some more.
Hi Ruth, Thank you for comments ad suggestions. I am sorry to hear about your daughter’s accident. I hope she doing well now.
What does your mouth/lip area look like now? I recently had a fall and my lip looks similar. I have a ball/lump area and am hoping it will disappear.
Hi Bri gr, I am sorry you had a recent fall. I wish for you the best possible result and a speedy recovery. I still have a scar that I feel but most people don’t notice. The Cupid’s bow returned to my lip and the ball flattened out. I still have to keep it moisturized. Keep massaging it. I think circulation makes a big difference.
How is your lip doing now? I am 4 weeks in to a lip injury with surgical repair and I have a ” ball” too. Will it ever go away?
How is your lip doing now? I have same issue and wonrdering if the “ball” will ever go away?
It does. Everyone heals differently but it will improve. I still have scarring but I don’t think it is obvious to most people. Massaging it really helps as well as keeping it moist. Wishing you a speedy and excellent recovery!
Hi there ! Thanks for sharing your story!
My son. who is 5, fell off his bike 2 weeks ago. His top teeth bit through his bottom lip. It was bad. He got it stitched and it has healed well. However I feel scar tissue right under his lip on that side and on the lip itself. So when he smiles, it looks a bit swollen on one side but I think it’s really scar tissue formation and no longer swelling .
I was wondering how long it took for the lump you felt to flatten out? I’m very worried this would be permanent for him ?
I’ve been putting aloe vera on it and mederma on the bottom part but I’m afraid to massage since I dont know if that would worsen it or not. Ped said to give it a couple more weeks or we would be referred to dermatology. Thanks so much for any advice !
If it’s only been two weeks, it should flatten out more. It took months. It’s not the way it was before. The scar does cause my lip to stick out a bit more in one spot but it’s much better. Massaging it won’t make it worse unless it is still too sore or the skin is broken. It will increase circulation. My oral surgeon encouraged me to massage it. Using coconut oil will make massage easier. Best wishes for an excellent recovery!
Hello,
I was wondering how long it took for your lip bump to go away if you remember. I suffered a bad fall and bit my lip pretty bad three months ago. And i still have this quiet annoying bump. Not sure massage alone will do anything. Plus not totally sure i am doing it alright (i tend to be too aggressive i guess).
Anyway, sorry to annoy you with this. You probably dont feel like hearing from that since it has been a while. Take care,
M.J
Hi MJ, I’m sorry I didn’t see this sooner. I hope you have had significant improvement and your injury is healing well. Massage does help. In fact, I still do it 7 years later. Increasing the circulation helps a lot. All the best to you as you recover!
Thank you so much for your quick reply! I greatly appreciate it.
Thanks all for the info / I tripped and busted Cupid’s bow 3 weeks ago / it’s healing and been massaging it with cocoa butter /but still self conscious of slight ball / feels hard though and itchy. I try not to worry to much about it thanks for all the comments. Keep the faith. We are still beautiful
It will get better! My lip injury was severe. So, I have a scar. It’s much better than it was. I don’t think other people notice I have it for the most part. Keep massaging and moisturizing. It really helps!
Thanks Cynthia
It healing but the knot is still there and it feels itchy.