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Has anyone used Mederma?
Mederma, for those of you who don’t know, is a relatively new gel that’s supposed to help lessen the appearance of scars. Apparently it contains some “proprietary” botanical extract. I don’t know what that means because I highly doubt Merk invented a plant, or discovered a super-secret one deep in the hills of Borneo and hid it from everyone else, or anything, but it’s a pharmaceutical company, so I suppose anything is possible.
It’s an odd gel that feels silicone-like, (although doesn’t seem to contain any silicone) has a light, fairly pleasant smell, and doesn’t really dry or soak into your skin like a skin cream does. You’re supposed to use it 3-4 time a day so it basically forms a layer over your skin that tends to flake or rub off when rubbed. (It’s like a thin layer of rubber comes off. Weird.)
It’s expensive, over the counter, and while there is actually a money-back guarantee on the thing, there is no guarantee that it will work. It might, it might not. With all the different people, with all the different types of skin, and all the different types of scars, there is really no way to know if it will work for any given person.
The thing is, it makes me ITCHY. Like, seriously. Which really negates the whole point. Now, instead of my neck looking awful because of an incision scar it looks even worse because of all the scratching. It’s driving me crazy! You’d think after all the crazy side effects I’ve had over the years that I could get over a little itching. Nope. It’s a 24 / 7, every single minute of the day problem. Itching should not be underestimated.
Other people seem to like the stuff, and only my neck really seems to itch, not so much the scar on my chest, (Why? Who the hell knows. I have no idea why my brother turns red after taking niacin either.) so I might continue to try it there. And hey, if you’re like me and a pile of scars anyway, there are places all over to try it. (Yes, it’s supposed to work on even old scars, but be prepared to use it 4 times a day for months.) I have totally found a new market for these people. They should hand out samples to cutters and they’ll have clients for life.
Oh, I forgot, they’re a pharmaceutical company. They’ve already got people on that.
Natasha Tracy is an award-winning writer, speaker, advocate, and consultant from the Pacific Northwest. She has been living with bipolar disorder for 26 years and has written more than 2000 articles on the subject.
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Yeah, it's pretty miserable having layers of goo causing the nasty itchiness. You could try the cream, which some people have said fixes the problem. Me, I just gave up on it.
Try to love your scars. I know that's a tough one, but they will become just another part of you over time.
I am also itching like crazy. My doctor suggested i use Mederma for my mastectomy scars. I may have to take a break or just quit. The itching is so severe I am unable to sleep. I am up now and it is 3AM. Just took a shower to get the Mederma off and I am still miserable!
I had a thyroidectomy and used biofine (need prescription) for 2 weeks to promote healing and now I am using Mederma. I agree the gel formula itches my neck like crazy and is a bit red. I almost thought I was having a reaction then I switched to the Mederma cream with SPF 30 and it stopped itching. You might want to go that route. Good luck!
That’s how I found it….the itching from Mederma drove me nearly insane.
I’m more than a little irritated about it. I am thinking that time + massaging the scars are really the only thing that works.
The fact that you are using Mederma or lotion or cocoa butter or whatever to massage into your scars makes no difference.
Actually, a lot of people find this post because they searched for “Mederma itching” or something similar. Seems to be a common reaction.
Wow, I wasn’t sure if I was the only one getting this reaction… I had a parathyroidectomy a couple months ago and decided to give this thing a try. It worked alright for 2 days, but recently it started to itch, i thought it was cause the product was actually working but the itching just won’t go away! I removed it from the top of the scar and when i got out the shower, it looked like i have a long red band across my neck.
Nope, I couldn’t take it anymore. They do, apparently, have a cream formula that is supposed to be less itchy, but do you want to spend that much money to find out? I’m pretty sure I don’t.
(Oh, and search vitamin E for scars. There is evidence to suggest that it can make scars worse, and there is no evidence saying that it helps. It’s really just an old wife’s tale, I suspect.)
I just bought mederma for a new thyroidectomy scar, tried it last night, and my neck itches like CRAZY… I might just go back to applying vitamin e… it’s itchy and red as I type this AUGH! Are you still using it?
Ew, gross marketing bot.
DELETED.