How do I explain scars when a young child asks about them?

Depending on the type of scars they are it is okay to be honest about what they are from. I have several scars that I have acquired from growing up and being adventurous. If anyone ever asks about mine, even kids, I'm just honest about it and tell them how I got the scar and what I have learned not to do by getting the scar. In my opinion, scars tell stories, and sometimes it is okay to make a fictional story about a certain scar you don't really want to tell the true meaning behind it about.

When a young child asks about scars, I think gentle honesty with simplicity is key. Also, the explanation should not happen in a way that focuses on the scar to the point of creating fear in the child about what caused it. For example, if you have a scar on your knee from falling off a bike, you might tell the story like this: I decided to ride my bike and I was not paying attention to the rock that was in my way. My bike hit the rick and I fell off my bike. It did hurt and I was also okay. I got on my bike and rode back home to clean it. I did learn something though: I should watch out for rocks in my path :). I think this allows the child to understand that painful things happen and that it is not the end. Life goes on and we can be okay after a painful event.

You can maybe say that a scar is like a sign that remains after a wound. But it is not bad, it is a good sign, because you don't have a wound anymore, since it has recovered. So the child is not worried about you, and just thinks that it is alright and normal and healthy to have a scar, because it shows you're okay and you don't have pain anymore. The only thing that remains is a scar. Maybe it doesn't look so great, but it is like a reminder and always remember you are beautiful, even with a scar :)

scars are a sign of a fighter.Its like a tiger stripe,meaning that this person fought a lot and won.Thats how life is with us.It gives us a test,andsometimes its very hard.Some passes,some do not.It depends on how we see the situation.Maybe its a a hard fight,maybe its an easy one.You cant predict it but you have to be strong enough to pass everything,because we have a lot to see in life.Thats why we are left after a big fight with scars.They are like a reward,like a sign for people to know that we are winners in life,we won and we did it.

What an honorable question. I understand how difficult it can be, I have been asked by children and also asked adults as a child about scars. To a kid, we have none. We are new and shiny toys so for them it is just something interesting. I have scars from self-harm. I choose to tell children that ask about them that they are my "battle scars" that everytime I have gone through something difficult, that I have had an obstacle, life gave me a battle scar. But I choose to add that some battle scars are good as well, some of them are giving just from doing amazing things. I hope this helped.

Children are so curious and they soak up new information at a surprisingly fast rate -- faster than we, as adults, realize. Always best to be honest with them and a good way to help them learn about health and wellness and how the body heals. Not being embarrassed by talking with them about it teaches them a lot as well. And if you don't really know a lot about your own physiology, it's a good learning segue for a lot of adults and you get to learn something new together. It's exciting to learn new things, especially through the eyes of a child.

I would definitely consider the age and relationship of the child to you. If you have full disclosure, I would be as honest and appropriate as you are comfortable being. For example, I probably would not be very specific, especially to a young child. I would most likely say "I used to have some pretty bad times in my life and sometimes things that hurt us leave scars. They used to be injuries (or boo-boos, ouchies, etc) but since I started feeling better, they are scars now that remind me I have better days now. Do you have any other questions about them?

It's kinda hard to explain something like this to a young child. When a little child asked about mine I told them that "you know how humans aren't supposed to hurt themselves or others on purpose? Well I broke that rule because I was feeling a lot of emotions at once and got overwhelmed. It's ok to get overwhelmed sometimes and if you do get overwhelmed I'm right here to talk about it with you but don't break that rule like I did ok?" Then the little child was really understanding and said "I know people make mistakes sometimes and that's ok. If you get overwhelmed you can talk to me too." I think that's the best way to explain it without lying.