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How Can Scars Affect My Health Negatively?

By September 23, 2016 No Comments

For us to be able to understand the significance of scars, we must first understand the basic functioning of the autonomic nervous system.

The Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) is the part of our nervous system that operates involuntarily, meaning without our control, directing and regulating things such as heartbeat, functioning of the organs, digestion, immune response, etc. The ANS has two parts – the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and the parasympathetic nervous system (PSNS). The SNS controls your basic fight-or-flight stress response as well as active states like exercising. The PSNS controls rest and digestion, relaxation and repair.

Scars on the surface of the body from past injuries, surgeries, tattoos, or any other major trauma to the skin have consistently been found to cause hidden disturbances in the functioning of the ANS as over 80% of the SNS nerve fibers are located directly below the skin. These scars can sometimes act as capacitors that accumulate nerve energy and then mis-fire at will. This can cause all sorts of disturbances in system and organ function. We call this an “active” scar.

Clinically, we have seen major improvements when scars are properly treated. Some examples include kidney function improving with the treatment of an old appendix scar, headaches improving with the treatment of an old head wound from a car accident, post-pardum depression improving from the treatment of a C-section or episiotomy scar, and so on and so on.

When an active scar is found, it must be handled and treated both with weekly cold laser therapy, done here in the office, and with daily application of Sesame Seed Oil.

 

Written by Laura Bautista, Patient Advocate & Holistic Health Coach