If you’ve just recovered from your breast augmentation surgery, you’re probably dying to get outside and sit by the pool, but how soon is too soon when it comes to tanning after your procedure and can a tan help hide your scars?
Tanning and Scars: What You Need to Know
Unfortunately, UV rays can actually make your scars worse instead of making them less visible. Spending too much time in the sun when your scars are still fresh is a bad idea and will slow down the skin’s complete repair process.
If you think about how much the sun can damage your skin in general, you can just imagine what it would do to fresh skin cells. This is not to say that you shouldn’t be spending time in the sun after your surgery, it just means that you need to limit your exposure and take protection very seriously. Wear a good quality sunscreen with a high SPF as well as protective clothing if you’re going to be outside.
Ideally, you should wait until your scars have fully matured before you start tanning again or you could make your incision lines look really prominent. Your scars are made up brand new skin cells, which means they’re particularly fragile and should be treated as such.
What about Spray Tanning & Lotions?
While spray tanning and fake tan lotions are a much better way to conceal your scars after breast augmentation, you will need to give it some time.
Form & Face is a specialist for breast enlargement in Sydney and recommends waiting at least 6 months before you apply any harsh chemicals to or around your incisions. Waiting until your scars have matured will ensure that you’re not putting yourself at risk of infections.
It should also be said that not all products are safe to use on your skin after breast augmentation so speak to your surgeon about your options.
Enhancing Your Décolletage
There is one thing that you can do that won’t affect your incisions and that’s using a bronzing powder to enhance your décolletage after surgery.
If you do want to explore this option, make sure that your makeup is high quality and sterile and that you’re always using a clean brush to apply the bronzer. If you’ve never worked with a bronzer before, there are a number of helpful videos on YouTube that will show you how to enhance your décolletage without the need for UV rays.
At the end of the day, to keep your scars to a minimum, carefully follow your surgeon’s post-care instructions and rather find out whether it’s ok to use particular products on your scars after your surgery.
It’s not always easy to be patient to spend time in the sun after your breast augmentation but the wait is definitely worth it if it means you can keep your scars to a minimum. Speak to your surgeon about other products such as silicone sheets and gels to assist with the healing of your scars.
