Explaining scars to kids?
 

I have a lot of scars from cuts and cigarette burns on my arms. At the weekend we might be going visiting family. They have two girls aged 11 and 13, and I'm worried they might ask me about the scars or something. They are too old to believe some stupid story about it, and might already know about SI.
How do I explain it to them? My biggest fear is that I give them the idea to try it themselves. I'm rubbish with kids at the best of times, and these two are cooler than me anyway lol. And I don't want to make myself sound like a crazy either. Any advice please. x

ummmmm...... hope that it rains and then you can wear long sleeved top...
i usually say oh im really clumsy its nothing much, like you say they might already know- do any other family members know???
wouldnt panic too much before hand cos it might never happen :) if they ask then maybe just be honest with them or tell them to bog off and stop annoying you. i wouldnt worry bout them copying you, if you do talk to them about it, tell them the bad stuff too and how hard it is etc.

sorry not been much help!! good luck x

i think you should just be honest with them. at there age they will pobaly have heard about self harm through school/ friends etc and they will appreciate the truth and if you make up some ludicrous story they might think that you are being condescending or summit. sit down n explain to them. they will also know that it is a stupid thing to start if you tell them the down sides and they may even then be able to prevent friends from doing it. try and see it as a good thing rather then a bad thing, xx

when my little brother whos 3 first saw my scars, i froze and the first thing that popped into my head was that i got scratched by a cat.

Thats still what he thinks, he's not afraid of cats, because they dont hurt good little boys, i didnt even tell him that part thats what he worked out for himself.

Not saying this is a good thing, but it helps him to understand in a way.

In my opinion it would be best to just cover it up.

But that's just me. :) I can see why you would want to tell them though, but kids at that age can be impressionable regardless of what you say (if that makes any sense).

I totally agree with this; that way the parents can tell you what they'd rather you do or even give them the opportunity to tell the children so you're not put in that position.

either cover them or be upfront and honest, they're too old for lies. good luck and i hope you sail through your visit. afterwards you will probably wonder what all the worrying was about =) x

my fella's little niece who's 3 and a half was sat between myself and him a while back inspecting all our piercings and asking 'what's it for?' 'why?' as kids do when she came across our scars, luckily it was pretty easy

'what's that?'
'lines'
'what are they for'
'nothing'
'oh'
'quick look kate, cartoons on telly'

i suppose that only works on the really little, very easily distracted ones. just be strong, honest and upfront hun x

If it were me, I'd just keep them covered. I'm not comfortable explaining scars, and would feel horrible if anyone started after they found about about it through me. It's 100% up to you though. It really depends on your relationship with them and how mature they are.
Good luck in whatever you chose. I really hope it works out for the best<3