Scar Care doesn’t have to be scary! Q&A with Simona Cavanagh, C-Section Expert
MM: Hi, please introduce yourself and tell us a little about your work?
SC: Hello, my name is Simona. I’m the founder of Powellfit, specialising in prenatal wellbeing, postnatal fitness, and C-section scar massage therapy. I am a qualified pre- and postnatal coach, with a strong focus on postnatal recovery, diastasis recti rehabilitation, and supporting women after Caesarean birth.
My work is deeply personal. I have had two C-sections myself—my first in 2020 at the beginning of COVID, and my second in 2023. Experiencing firsthand the lack of structured postnatal care and support was what inspired me to create Powellfit. I wanted to build a safe, supportive space where women feel heard, understood, and properly guided through their recovery journey.
I am incredibly passionate about working with mums, particularly C-section mums, because I see every day how much support is missing in postpartum care. My goal is to help women reconnect with their bodies, recover with confidence, and feel strong, informed, and supported after birth. I truly believe that mums deserve better—and I am committed to providing that care.
MM:Are there any common myths or fears about C-section scars that you’d love to gently clear up?
SC: I think one of the biggest myths around C-section scars is that as long as the scar looks fine, then everything is fine. A lot of women are told at their six- to eight-week postnatal check-up, ‘Yes, it’s healing well’—and that’s often where the conversation ends.
But healing and recovery are not the same thing. Just because a scar has closed doesn’t mean it’s functioning well or supported properly. There is actually so much more we can do to help with scar mobility, sensation, comfort, and overall recovery.
I also think fear plays a big role, and that fear comes from not knowing. Many women aren’t given clear guidance, advice, or education on how to care for their scar—especially in those early weeks after birth. Straight after delivery, support often feels very limited, and women are left to figure things out on their own.
There’s this idea that you just have to give it time—that numbness, tightness, discomfort, or pulling sensations are simply part of motherhood and something you have to live with. And that’s a myth. It doesn’t have to be that way. With the right support and care, we can do so much to help women feel more comfortable, confident, and connected to their bodies after a C-section.
“Mums deserve their experiences to be acknowledged, and their emotional recovery supported, just as much as their physical healing.”
MM:Some women worry about touching their scar at all- what would you say to reassure them?
SC: I really believe it all comes back to knowledge. We always say that knowledge is power, and when that knowledge is missing, fear can very easily step in. For many women, the scar isn’t just physical—it can also hold emotional trauma—so there’s already a hesitation to go near it.
But very often, the fear is simply not knowing. Women ask themselves: Can I wash it yet? Can I touch it? Could it still open? Is it safe to massage? These questions can sit in the back of their minds for weeks, months, or even years, because no one has clearly explained what’s safe and when.
I once worked with a mum who had a 15-year-old C-section scar, and she told me she had never touched it because she wasn’t sure if it was still open. That really stayed with me, because it shows just how powerful that lack of information can be.
This is why education is so important. When we inform mums and guide them through the process, we give them confidence and reassurance. We help them understand when it’s safe to touch their scar, how gentle contact or desensitisation can be helpful, and when massage may support their recovery. And if there’s emotional trauma attached, that’s acknowledged and supported too.
It’s about empowering women with knowledge, so they feel safe, confident, and connected to their bodies again.
MM: For many women, the scar holds emotional memories as well as physical ones. How do you hold space for that in your work?
SC: I see so many mums who have experienced a very traumatic birth, often completely out of their control. It wasn’t the birth they had imagined or hoped for, and that alone can carry a lot of fear, grief, and disappointment. Scars don’t just hold physical changes — they often hold emotion as well.
Sometimes those feelings get unintentionally dismissed. You might hear, ‘You’re fine, the baby’s fine, you’ve both healed,’ and from a medical perspective that might be true. But emotionally, it can be a very different story. A birth can look ‘successful’ to the medical team yet feel deeply distressing to the mum who lived it.
Many women carry guilt, self-blame, or a sense of failure, even when none of it was their fault. Those feelings can quietly build and, for some mums, contribute to postnatal depression or ongoing emotional distress. When those emotions aren’t acknowledged, they can feel incredibly heavy and isolating.
That’s why creating a safe, non-judgemental space is so important in my work. If a mum is open to it, we always talk about her birth story — what happened, and just as importantly, how she feels about it. I gently ask what support she has around her and how she’s coping, and we take things at her pace.
My role is never to push, but to support — gently guiding her, and where needed, helping her access additional professional support. Simply being heard and having those feelings validated can be incredibly powerful. Mums deserve their experiences to be acknowledged, and their emotional recovery supported, just as much as their physical healing.
MM: That’s so true, thank you. When we talk about “scar healing” what does that really mean beyond how it looks?
SC: That’s such a great question, and it’s something that isn’t talked about enough. When we look at our tummy, we mostly see the external scar — and the body is truly incredible in how it heals. Within just a few days, the incision begins to close, and by around six to eight weeks the scar is usually fully closed on the surface. Externally, it can look really good.
By around 12 weeks, the scar has reached close to its maximum tensile strength, which often makes women feel like they’re ‘good to go’. But what we don’t see is what’s happening beneath the surface.
A C-section involves cutting through multiple layers — up to seven layers of tissue — and each of those layers heals at its own pace. Even after that six-week mark, healing hasn’t stopped. Scar tissue continues to remodel and adapt for up to two years, which is a long time when you think about it.
So while a scar might look fine on the outside, there can still be tightness, restriction, or adhesions underneath. That’s why ongoing support matters. Scar massage can be a really gentle and effective way to support this deeper healing process — helping to improve mobility, reduce tightness, and encourage the tissues to move more freely as the body continues to recover.
It’s really about understanding that healing doesn’t stop just because the scar looks okay on the outside. There’s so much more going on beneath, and with the right care, we can support the body through that longer recovery journey.”
MM: Right, there’s so much involved. Finally, if a woman reading this has had a c-section – recently or years ago, what would you most want her to hear today?
SC: That is never too late to get support. Whether your C-section was recent or many years ago, help is still available, and meaningful changes can still happen.
I’ve worked with so many mums whose C-sections were years ago, and they were still able to see improvements. Sometimes those changes are physical — like improved comfort or movement — but very often they’re emotional too. Scars can hold a lot of trauma, and simply having the space to talk, to process what happened, and to feel heard can be incredibly powerful.
Whether you’re a new mum in the early stages of recovery, or someone who had a baby years ago and never received the support you needed, I want you to know that you’re not alone. Your experience matters, and your recovery journey is still valid.
That’s exactly why I do this work — to remind mums that support exists, that healing can happen at any stage, and that they deserve care, understanding, and guidance throughout their C-section journey.
MM: Thanks Simona. Mums deserving care, understanding, and guidance- that definitely resonates with us!
Simona Cavanagh is a qualified personal trainer in Chelmsford, Essex.
She specialises in pre and post-natal exercise and nutrition, and has qualifications as a personal trainer, pre and post-natal therapist and nutritionist, in scar therapy and all-natal assessment.
Instagram: powellfit_
Web: powellfit.co.uk/
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