Does having scars on show make it uncomfortable for people who do not self harm?

I would say that it can. It used to be strange to me to see others with self harm scars. But now that I have them, I'm afraid of wierding others out. Yes, it can make them uncomfortable, but not always.

It depends. An acquaintance of mine has many scars on her arms which are often visible. I didn't initially notice them, but upon doing so I had to ask the question. I approached her and excused myself if the question was nosy but asked her to tell me about her experience with self-cutting if she was willing. She didn't have a problem confirming what they were but didn't want to go into it there so I let it drop. Sometime later she gave a presentation to the group (we meet twice a month to share information and healing experiences) about self-mutilation and its causes/cures. She's the only person I have ever known who I know used cutting to handle her stress at one point. But because of her, I have an awareness of it now, occasionally look for the signs and know that if it comes up, I have some idea about how to interact with the person. The biggest discomfort for me now is knowing someone is in that much pain and feeling the urge to help them without stripping them of their own power.

Often people will look because they haven't been through it themselves, but you should do things because it makes you comfortable. If you want to show them, go ahead. Being confident in you is more important!

it seems to me that it does make them uncomfortable. I didn't care while I was cutting as much for others to see the scars but I never really wanted everyone to know what I was doing. so I guess it could make people on both sides feel uncomfortable at times. people who haven't cut don't really understand why it's done. it's to kill emotional pain. once you see that the person is actually hurting inside it's not so hard to see it. fresh wounds may be worrisome though.

If they are composed people they might treat you how they always did but they may definitely be worried. Some people might get uneasy as they can’t empathise and they can only sympathise or they may start treating you differently which may make you more uncomfortable in the end. They might also feel guilty if it a very close loved one as they might feel responsible for it for they might blame themselves for not noticing earlier. Though this may not be often you might get looked at as stupid or a mentally unstable person to resort to this instead of the many other options.