Old Sunburn

Please talk to your doctor about your concerns, and/or take her to see a dermatologist.
I imagine they will tell you her skin is JUST FINE.
I am extremely fair and had a horrible, all over my body blistering sunburn when I was 11. I was literally in tears for two full days, it was awful.
I am diligent about sunscreen, for sure, both for myself and my kids. But do burns sometimes happen? Sure. Not often, but it happens, especially when your kids get older and start spending more time away from home (especially if they go to summer camp!)
I think you need to stop being "sad and mad" and accept that this was a one time, unfortunate mistake.
As much as we attempt to control every single thing that affects our children we just can't do it. This won't be the last time something like this happens. A few months ago I had to go pick up my intoxicated daughter from a party, now THAT was hard!!! She's a high school senior and prior to that had never gotten into ANY kind of trouble, so it was really upsetting. No mom should ever have to see their "little girl" that way, but like I said, these things happen :-(

My parents were vigilant about sunblock, because I'm a redhead. That didn't save me from sunburns. There were always parts that accidentally got missed.

I'm sure you're concerned because blistering sunburns can increase risk of skin cancer down the road. There's just nothing you can do at this point because you can't change the past. Don't lose sleep over it.

Just do the best you can going forward.

Take her to a dermatologist, just to be sure, but it would be unusual for a child not to heal completely from a sunburn, even a very severe one. I understand you're mad, but the chances of this being a significant medical issue are very, very low.

A.:

If you are still concerned - have her seen by a dermatologist.

She is young and our skin cells rejuvenate frequently.

Is it possible she has permanent skin damage? I don't know. Will she end up with melanoma or some other skin disease? I don't know. There are people who get lung cancer who never smoked a day in their life - and didn't hang with people who did...

I am sorry - I am not offering you comfort or reassurance. Things happen. You could apply 80+ SPF on her skin every day - and she can still get sun damaged skin. I'm sorry.

You can't control everything. It's GREAT that you are proactive and pay attention to the weather and skin care!!

I know that my oldest son had 2nd degree burns on his shoulders five years ago - and that was with sun screen - HUGE blisters - like sizes of half dollars and a softball...no freaking kidding. Took him to the Dr. - dermatologist - we didn't pop the blisters and let them heal - his shoulders get pink faster...and he's my pasty-faced white boy! LOL! I really do use 100+ sun screen on him.....

Take her to a dermatologist and have him or her tell you what is going on!

Good luck!

I believe sun damage is cumulative.
Moving forward, I 'd continue to be very vigilant about sunscreen, especially since that burn is apparently still very sensitive and not 100% healed.
Take comfort in the fact that LOTS (probably most) of us have had a bad sunburn at some point and aren't permanently scarred.
As someone in my late 40's, I remember WILLFULLY slathering on the baby oil and frying myself all summer, and I'm fair. So far, so good.
Maybe mention it at her next well child check.

Teach her now about good skin care and she will thank you later. At 5, my little guy knows that he needs cream on and a hat or he can't go outside. That's the rule and he's pretty good about it!

One sunburn doesn't cause cancer, a lifetime of bad habits does.

I don't think there is much cause for concern after 1 bistering burn, but you will need to be extra vigilant in the years to come. I think they say that if you have 3+ blistering sunburns the risk of skin cancer increases significantly. I've had 3 blistering burns in my life (2 in high school, 1 on my honeymoon), and I am now very cautious in the sun. I have my husband check my moles regularly to make sure there aren't any concerning ones.

I swore my kids would never get too much sun so they didn't freckle like me. Nope. My oldest has a ton, my youngest not many at all. And of course I didn't do anything different with lotion. I tried so hard but just the oldest's skin type. Likely it's your daughter's skin type a bit too. Her nose likely would still get pink as she aged. Maybe not. But maybe. you could ask at the next check up. But I do know that I have fair, freckly skin and like an idiot would sun bathe like crazy when I was young! SO MUCH. And my skin's not bad at all in my mid 40's. So I figure if I can keep my kids from doing a fraction of what I did, they're way way ahead of the game. So figure people for years and years burned like crazy and the vast majority are fine. I'd be bummed if I were you too yet I can't imagine one bad sunburn on a 6 year old will have lasting effects. If it did, after all my sunburns through my early 20's, I'd be a major wrinkly walking case of skin cancer now...

Haven't you ever had a sunburn?

She probably will get burned again. It's one of the side effects of being outside in the sun. It happens. It's not enjoyable or desireable, but it is what it is. She won't be scarred for life.

Teach her to remind whoever she is with about sunblock. She's old enough to take some responsiblity for it herself.

My kids will be 6, 8, and 10 for this summer. The last two summers we have lived at the pool. They know to keep an eye on the clock and come see me every hour to reapply. So they have been doing it since 4, 6, and 8. My kids are also mixed and I've never seen them burn, but that doesn't mean that can't have sun damage.

Sunburns happen, no need to stress about it or hold on to anger. It turns pink now more then likely because she has a little scaring. That should fade as well with time. There is never a guarantee of no skin damage, you can never burn a day in your life and get melanoma, or you tan and burn your whole life and have great skin. Either way, one burn is not the end of the world.

I burned all the time as a kid, bad enough to scar a few times, and I (as of yet) don't have skin cancer or anything. I do have some sun spots which I have managed to lighten with OTC products, but they did not appear until I was in my 30s.

Owww, sorry about that neglect! Well, there are no guarantees. Sun damage accumulates, and those severe burns do have an effect. But it may or may not have a terrible long-term consequence.

There's also new evidence that applying strong green tea to the skin soon after a sunburn may block much of the long-term damage that happens to the DNA in skin cells. I don't know whether this will actually help so long after the original burn, but I'm using green tea on a regular basis on my skin these days. I've also been told by doctors that I have unusually healthy skin, considering my coloring and history.

I'm a very pale, freckled red-head, and I've had more deep, blistering sunburns in my childhood than I can count. Now 65, I have had to have several pre-cancerous lesions frozen off face, shoulders and back. It's not a big deal unless your doc charges $150 per squirt of liquid nitrogen (that was my sticker shock last time I had this done on 3 spots). I also had one punch biopsy and a cyst removed, which may not have been about sun exposure.

A much younger, dark-haired neighbor had a very early melanoma removed from her leg a couple of years ago. She loves sitting bare-legged in the sun, but now she covers up. She's had no recurrence, but it's sort of like an invisible axe hanging over her head. Scary.

Burns, when bad, take a while to go away. However, if you can get her into good skin care habits now, it will go a long way in the future. Having said that, Aveeno Baby makes a sensitive face sunblock (SPF 50+) that I would recommend. I use it with my fair-skinned 6 yo and it works great. My advice is to have her begin using it every day- even in the winter. Just make it part of her morning routine.

Her nose was at least a 2nd degree burn, the skin is damaged and because it turns pink so easily, that is significant. She needs to avoid any further damage or she will have problems as she ages. She needs sunblock every time she is exposed to the sun and if at all possible, have her wear a hat of some sort that will shade her nose.
IF my child, I would not take lightly.

As an RN, I have seen horrible things I won't mention to cause worry, but your skin and face is the first thing anyone see's, so protect that little girl.

I blistered my shoulders when I went on a float trip when I was about 20 years old, that skin has never been the same since and left with pigment changes and age spots. The average person does not realize how prevalent skin cancer is and the amount of ultra-violet light to which one is exposed. It is a worsening problem in the world of Oncology and dermatology.