Self harm

Self harm is such a taboo topic
And no people, self harm isn't just cutting,
It's also:
1. cutting or severely scratching your skin
2. burning or scalding yourself
3. hitting yourself or banging your head
4. punching things or throwing your body against walls and hard objects
5. sticking objects into your skin
6. intentionally preventing wounds from healing
7. swallowing poisonous substances or inappropriate objects

Self-harm is a way of expressing and dealing with deep distress and emotional pain. As counterintuitive as it may sound to those on the outside, hurting yourself can make you feel better. In fact, you may feel like you have no choice. Injuring yourself is the only way you know how to cope with feelings like sadness, self-loathing, emptiness, guilt, and rage.
The problem is that the relief that comes from self-harming doesn’t last very long. It’s like slapping on a Band-Aid when what you really need are stitches. It may temporarily stop the bleeding, but it doesn’t fix the underlying injury. It also creates its own problems.
People who self harm do not want to die, they want a way to escape from the pain.
* Each year, 1 in 5 females and 1 in 7 males engage in self injury
* 90 percent of people who engage in self harm begin during their teen or pre-adolescent years
* Nearly 50 percent of those who engage in self injury activities have been sexually abused
* Females comprise 60 percent of those who engage in self injurious behavior
* About 50 percent of those who engage in self mutilation begin around age 14 and carry on into their 20s
* Many of those who self injure report learning how to do so from friends or pro self injury websites
* Approximately two million cases are reported annually in the U.S.


Here are 10 things you wish you knew before you started self harming (from mental health on the mighty's Fb page)

1. People glamorize it. I found that people online make it seem like it’s something wonderful. Like it’s a golden ticket out of our feelings. But in reality it was something really dangerous.
2. It doesn’t help with emotional pain. It pushes away emotions, which only makes them harder to deal with and delays what is inevitable.
3. Always take thoughts about self-injurious behavior seriously. It’s something I wish I was able to get help for sooner. It escalated so quickly.
4. It’s an addictive behavior. I had moments when I wished I could stop, but I just couldn’t. The behavior became something I liked so quickly.
5. It’s so isolating. I pushed my family and friends away. I didn’t want them to know my secret. At one point the only friends I had were online and I never left my bedroom.
6. I felt a lot of shame. I felt so much embarrassment and guilt after I self-harmed. It was something I didn’t want anyone to know about, especially the people closest to me.
7. It’s dangerous. It can cause infections or other serious medical issues that require trips to the ER. Because it can be an addictive behavior, the degree to which you hurt yourself can get worse each time.
8. What I was feeling was valid. In the heat of the moment, I didn’t feel like I deserved to feel the way I did. Which usually came in forms of anger, sadness and disappointment.
9. The moment will pass. My feelings were valid and they, like everything else, will pass. Just because it’s how I’m feeling now doesn’t mean I’ll always feel that way.
10. It can be a symptom of a larger problem. Like depression, anxiety and even borderline personality disorder
If you’re thinking about using self-harm to cope with what you’re going through, please don’t. It’s something I wish I never started. Instead read a book, listen to music, talk to a friend. Those things helped me through some of my toughest times. Another thing you should do is reach out and see a therapist, counselor or someone who can help you cope with what you’re going through.


Please think and talk to someone before you self harm, it's not just 'oh I'll do it this once to help because I'm overwhelmed' but you'll end up doing it again and again, you'll have scars you'll have to hide.
It's being scared for the rest of your life, do you want scars on your body for the rest of your life?
just think about that before you think about self harming
You can do other things than self harm when your overwhelmed :
1. Confide in someone
2. Be open to receiving help from others
3. Get plenty of exercise
4. Recognize your cutting triggers
5. Learn new coping skills for dealing with stress


And for the ignorant people who shame self harmers! What are you doing to help those people? Do you think your laughing and being blatantly ignorant about the topic is going to help them get better?  No it's just going to make them do it in a place you can't see!
So stop being assholes and try understanding why they felt the need to do it and help them through it!

Thanks for reading!
-lifeofshivy