Soften Your C-Section Scar
A Simple Way To Soften Your C-Section Scar - And Why It Matters
If you’re anything like the moms I see every week, you may have made peace with that low, horizontal scar—even grown to appreciate it as proof of what your body accomplished. But sometimes, months (or years) later, you still feel it tug when you twist out of bed or scoop your toddler from the floor. You might chalk that up to “just how C-sections heal,” yet part of you wonders whether it has to stay that way.
Here’s some good news: research shows that a few minutes of gentle scar massage each day can make the tissue more flexible and reduce that pulling sensation by almost half in just four weeks.¹ In other words, you can change the way your scar feels—and the way your core and pelvic floor work—without fancy equipment or painful procedures.
When to begin
Start only after your incision is fully closed and your OB or midwife has given the all-clear (around the 3-week mark for most low-transverse incisions). If you notice new redness, warmth, or sharp pain, hit pause and have your physician check it first.
The five-minute routine I teach every client
Light glides—warm the area with gentle up-down and side-to-side strokes.
Lift & roll—pinch a small fold of skin, lift it, and roll it between your fingers to free deeper layers.
Cross friction—at six weeks post-op, add tiny side-to-side strokes directly across the scar.
One or two rounds a day for six weeks is usually enough to bring the scar’s mobility in line with surrounding skin.
When massage isn’t quite enough
Occasionally a scar stays thick or hypersensitive no matter how faithfully you massage it. That’s when we add dry needling—a technique that uses fine, sterile needles to create microscopic channels, boost circulation, and jump-start collagen remodelling. Early studies show it speeds up softness and comfort when combined with hands-on work, and I perform it only after complete incision healing.
Ready for personalised help?
During a 60-minute postpartum evaluation we’ll check your core strength, pelvic-floor function, and scar mobility, then build a plan that may include manual therapy and, if appropriate, dry needling. If you’d like that kind of one-on-one guidance, give us a call and we'll help you get scheduled!
