Whether it’s juvenile idiocy or a severe operation, people are always curious about how others got their scars. It’s a strange fixation which has always confused me a little — people staring with such intensity at a little indent on your forehead, positively burning to ask, “Go on, how did you get that then?!” and then looking quite deflated when you say you fell onto a table as a kid.
However, one Reddit user sought to find out the myriad of reasons as to why people get scars in one go, by posing the simple question to Reddit: “How did you get your scars?”
RELATED STORIES
Well, the internet answered with a variety of insane, painful sounding, and occasionally tragic stories that I have gathered for you here.
Mauled By A Chipmunk
“Me, being the little kid I was, wanted to hold the adorable chipmunk [that had ran inside a fallen log]. So I first tried putting my hand inside to pull it out— no luck, I only scared the chipmunk into a little dead-end hole inside of the log. So then I did something extremely intelligent— I took a stick and tried to poke it down the hole. A tiny, chubby bullet of hate and sharp claws leaped at my face.” — lookin4apup
What were you thinking? You only have to look at a chipmunk’s face to know that they’re evil beings of hatred and misery. Don’t fall for their facade.
“I got shot in the face during a car-jacking.”
“Bullet went in about an inch in front of my ear, through my cheekbone, through my sinus and maxilla bone, then hit the mass of bone in the roof of my mouth and stopped. The ballistic energy from the round caused it to blow about a 50 cent piece coin-sized hole through the roof of my mouth, and a combination of the blood pouring out and gravity caused the bullet to fall into my mouth from where it came to a stop in the bone right above it. I ended up spitting it out on the ground thinking it was a tooth.” — Ispitoutabulletonce
Well, I mean, now their username makes a little more sense I guess!
Wrestlemania
“My brother and I were playing WWF in the house (even though we weren’t supposed to!). He grabbed the back of my head and slammed my forehead into the ‘turn buckle’ which was the wooden corner of the arm rest on our couch. Blood started running down my face; he ran and hid under his bed. I got 7 stitches in my R eyebrow.” — tamage0802
See, wrestling is real! Well, when it’s kids doing it is anyway.
Toddler Temper Tantrum
“I have a scar on my eyebrow from when I was an a*shole 4-year-old. I threw a tantrum and tried to pick up a small plastic kids table to throw it over my head. Instead, I dropped it, the leg hit me with a sharp broken edge on the eyebrow/eye, I started bleeding, and I had a black eye for Christmas.” — catastrophichysteria
At least they seem to be a bit self-aware now. Hopefully, they aren’t as much of an, to use their own term, a*shole any more!
“‘I have what I lovingly refer to as ‘Jesus Scars’.”
“When I was 13, I was trying to pry something apart with a chisel and stabbed myself in the right hand by accident. When I was 23, I was using my box cutter at work to separate some boxes and cut my left hand in almost the exact same place. Can’t wait to see what stupid thing I do at 33.” — HolyOrdersOtaku
Yeah, I’d take extra care that year that you’re 33! When you’re 34 you can get back to juggling knives or whatever.
Making Enchiladas Can Be A Dangerous Business
“Cut the tip of my thumb off making enchiladas… Couldn’t find the thumb in the sink, so no one ate them. Was kinda mad about that. I sacrificed my flesh to make you dinner and you’re not gonna eat it???” — ppardee
The waste of enchiladas is truly lamentable; I mean, what’s a bit of thumb gonna do to the flavor really?
Knitting Needles
“I have a big scar down the center of my chest. I had just turned 3 and I was at my grandparents’ house with my family. My older cousin was spinning me around in a swivel chair. I fell off of the chair and landed on my side […] A knitting needle went through my side and pierced my heart.
“My aunt thought the needle was just caught in my shirt and ripped it out of me. I went unconscious almost immediately. By the time I got to the hospital, I had lost a lot of blood and the doctors basically told my parents to prepare for the worst. Luckily, there was a badass heart surgeon there that performed emergency open-heart surgery and saved my life!” — deedah17
Bacteria From The Ocean
“I got mastitis in my breast from swimming in the ocean and they had to cut a hole into it to drain it. They said bacteria channeled in through my nipple ducts. I didn’t even know that could happen.”
I had no idea that could happen either. According to the person who posted this, the way to avoid this is to change out of your bathing suit immediately after swimming and try taking Epsom salt baths.
Trimming A Hedge
“I was trimming a bush with an electric hedge trimmer and without thinking, I rested the running hedge trimmer on my hand. I had to get like 15 stitches. I am not a smart man.” — RegisterFlexOffender
Anyone can make mistakes I guess! This is a pretty daft one though I have to admit!
Self-Harming
“I use to cut myself when I was in high school. It was a dark time. I’m better now, been clean for 4 years.” — rando6819
This one is decidedly more serious, but it is great that this person has managed to overcome these specific demons. When you’re in those moments of feeling that self-harm is the only option, it can feel like there will be no way through; however, with support from friends, family, and helplines, it is absolutely possible to leave those times behind and move forward.
Yet Another Peacock-Related Injury!
“Catching a peacock. They have sharp talons.” — condit45
I mean, I guess that sums up how you got them, I really feel like we need a lot more details about why you were trying to catch a peacock though!
Zip-Lines & Ice-Skates
“One on my ankle, which I got from ice skating in high school. We were standing on the ice, eating and drinking something when someone who was passing by fell and slid past me, slicing my leg open.
“And another one on the inside of my arm close to my armpit, which I got from a small zipline accident. One of the ropes got stuck on my arm while going down so it burned a nasty wound into my arm.” — not_flipperkip
Now that is one heck of an injury-prone person. They’re such ludicrously specific injuries!
Chik-Fil-A, The Most Dangerous Game!
“I have a burn scar on my right arm, from when I worked at Chik-Fil-A and got too careless with the fry cooker.” — dontcryformegiratina
I’ve never worked a fry cooker before, but they sound as dangerous as a Cornballer!
Another Casualty Of School Arts & Crafts
“I was making a paper plate mask in grade 3 and stuck a pair of scissors through the plate for eyes… Right into my other hand.” — Puddle42
When you’re a kid, arts and crafts could be a death trap; between gluing yourself to something and cutting yourself with scissors, it’s a miracle that they still let kids do art in school!
Kid Logic
“I was four. I was bouncing on a beachball. My mom told me to go upstairs to bed, so I thought I could bounce up the stairs on the beach ball. I missed the first step and got stitches in my forehead. That’s kid logic for ya.” — nicknackers10
I had a similar experience, except mine involved a wide overestimation of my abilities on a pogo stick.
Just One Word…
“Cats” — Chris_Is_Pure
Yep, no explanation required, this is simply the most relatable one on this list!
Dangerous Dogs
“I got windmilled by a panicking Shiba inu before I could clip her nails. I’ve worked with perhaps dozens of Pitbulls, and my one dog-related scar came from a Shiba inu small enough to be carried with one arm.” — CryingWorm2018-19
It’s the little ones you’ve got to watch out for! Not really, but y’know, they can be pretty wily.
The Dangers Of Youth
“[Got all mine] mostly through unfiltered stupidity and youth. 1 or 2 of them from mosquito bites that I itched waaaaay too much.” — jo_coltrane
I think everyone on Earth must be able to relate to this one. When you’re young you seem to be able to bounce back from anything, now when I stub my toe I have to lie down for an hour and have a hot bath afterward.
Onion Tears
“I cut into my finger instead of the onion.” —Milk2Stay
Kitchen knife accidents are pretty common, but I wonder if onions are near the top of the list. It can be hard to see what you’re doing through the tears.
Backyard Barbecue
“I backed my arm up against a barbecue grill when I was younger. I was the perfect height to get my entire upper arm. Elbow up to shoulder. I still have noticeable scars 20 odd years later.” —Nanisauras
Ouch.
Merry Christmas
“About when I was 10 I had Christmas lights in my room and these were just ordinary tree lights. So one night the tape fell off and for about a week they just lied there on my floor next to my bed. One night I was sleeping and I fell off my bed and my right arm fell on a some on the Christmas wire right on a light. The next morning I notice that a small portion of my skin was missing and yellow gunk is coming out.” —Bik-B0i
Those old-style Christmas lights always got uncomfortably warm, but this is extreme.
Shattered Glass
“I have a scar on the arm that is really hard to see but I remember how I got it: when I was going out of the shower, my mom told me to wash myself better because there was still some soap on me. When I finished i was angry and slid the glass door too hard.. it broke. I was young so I was screaming like a dying goat lmao but I was pretty smart so I protected my head with arms and that’s how I got the scar son.” —Baguettes_are_good
Apparently, glass shower doors can shatter with just the force of a grumpy child slamming them. Good to know.
Glasses
“I wore glasses with a plastic frame all the time during one summer. Now I have small, yet visible, burns on the sides of my nose.” —EskettiMySpaghetti
This is a first I’ve heard about burns from glasses. Though I have permanent indents on my nose and behind my ears from wearing glasses that were too small as a kid. I grew faster than insurance would cover new pairs.
Mom Goals
“I had a csection and then a breast reduction. Nothing fancy. Lol.” —kellywithayy
Nothing fancy, but still a badass mom.
Homemade Explosives
“On my bicep from when my arm was blown open by a homemade pipe bomb.
“A person we worked with, Person A, loved pranks. Their favorite, was to stuff some Piccolo Pete fireworks into a plastic 2 liter bottle and toss it at someone. Being plastic, the bottle would melt, and just make a super loud bang, scaring the shit out of someone.
“Well, Person A had someone working him him, Person B. Person B also loved pranks, and tried to mimic Person A’s prank, but with PVC pipe instead of a plastic bottle. Person A tossed it my way. How neither of them knew PVC pipe would frag out instead of melt, is beyond me. So I’m washing this truck wheel, when out of nowhere, I get flashbanged Call of Duty style.” —treywarp
Multiple Surgeries
“11 surgeries. I was born with Prune Belly Syndrome. Got Chronic Kidney Disease at 6 months old.” —valentinojf
That’s awful, but it seems like they came through it safe and healthy.
Shingles Are The Worst
“Got shingles on my face as a teenager. Do not recommend. The bonus though is that the scar kind of looks like a love heart.” —jonathonstrange
My brother-in-law has gotten shingles and it was awful.
Safety First
“An idiot with a .38 who doesn’t know basic range safety.” —CaptSeaTomato
You would think people wouldn’t be allowed on the range without proving they know the basics, but even if they do, an accident with a firearm happens too quickly to be noticed in time to prevent it.
Cat Scratch Fever
“I have a pretty noticeable scar on the right side of my neck that often gets mistaken for a really bad hickey. The story I tell everyone because I’m sick of explaining is that I was stabbed in the neck with a knife.
“The real story is that when I was 5, I had been scratched in my eye from one of our house cats while I was asleep. The scratch had infected lymph nodes in my neck, causing it to become extremely swollen, where it was difficult for me to even breathe. Doctors were baffled by what it was, where I spent several weeks/months in and out of the hospital. They speculated it was lymphoma at the time. I had my neck drained from the fluid from massive syringes that I still have nightmares over, and also have a paralyzing fear of needles.
“The scar ultimately came from me undergoing 3 separate surgeries where they removed infected lymph nodes from my neck, and late discovered I suffered from a very severe case of cat scratch fever. ” —WheresTheMoozadel
Teenage Hormones
“Severe acne.” —DeathSpiral321
This seems very common and I am eternally grateful that I didn’t have more than a handful of zits in my puberty years.
Cooking While Tired
“I was tired after flying home, it was like 4 am, I was making a waffle in the toaster and then I sort of blacked out for a bit, next thing I know the toaster is on around my arm/ I stuck my arm in the toaster?? I have this nice scar now around my wrist from the time I horribly failed at making a waffle” — uwu_cacophony333
Cooking when you’re tired is apparently just as dangerous as cooking when you’re drunk, who knew?
Medical Mistakes
“When I was 15 I had keyhole surgery for appendicitis. Three barely noticeable scars, one of which is in my belly button. Unfortunately, something was left inside me and the morning after being discharged I woke with a fist-sized cyst on my abdomen.
“I had gone septic and had to have whatever was left inside of me removed via non-keyhole surgery which left me with a neat straight line scar about 12cm long. Also had to have a drain into my lower abdomen so I’ve got a big ol’ hole about 6cm below my belly button. Unsightly as hell.” —mooroi
With A Boomerang
“Boomerang. Right on the elbow. Got it protecting my mother from being hit. Unfortunately, the scar wasn’t big and faded away. I couldn’t make this up if I tried.” — Silver_Alpha
I’ve never even tried throwing a boomerang, ’cause I reckon if I did, this is the kind of ridiculousness that would happen!
Quite The List
“1. Needle piercing my cheek during mother’s labor
“2. Forceps tore the ish outta my face
“3. Flint rock on my bare foot at 3, many stitches
“4. Face smash, concrete
“5. chicken pox
“6. lawn mower muffler
“7. angry rabbit” —ARTX11
