Scarily VAST list of coping strategies

tips on how to cope: dealing with your feelings, dealing with the consequences of self-harm in your life. share your ideas and maybe pick up some new skills, too. you don't have to want to stop to learn something new here.

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raveneleni
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Post by raveneleni » Sat Dec 22, 2007 5:32 pm

Scoots wrote:WOW!!!!!!!!!

This is great. Thanks. am now going to print it out and next time i am feeling bad my distraction will be to read them through and decide which ones will be useful for me.

Thankyou :)

me too! great list

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Nursing_girl
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Post by Nursing_girl » Mon Dec 24, 2007 5:43 am

Thank you! These are all great ideas.
~~~Kristen~~~
Life is a song...Love is the Music::: My Place!

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*There been times that I thought I couldn't last for long
But now I think I'm able to carry on
It's been a long, a long time coming
But I know a change gonna come, oh yes it will
-Sam Cooke*

duskwalker666
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Post by duskwalker666 » Thu Jan 03, 2008 5:25 am

this stuff is really helpful I like a lot of the ideas on the list like giving your self something if you go a month with out SI I also like keeping a tally of when you do or don't SI. And the holding ice works really well. I'm going to try a lot of these ideas thanks the list is great. :)

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recovering4me
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Post by recovering4me » Thu Jan 10, 2008 3:36 am

:snail:
Proud Member of NOB WHEATS
Not Old But We Hate Every and All Text Speak
Completely cut free since sometime in Aug, im not going back.
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Sober since June 19
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*grieving the loss of my little girl, Addie Leygh, RIP baby girl, mommy loves you*
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Magus
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Post by Magus » Sat Feb 23, 2008 1:30 am

If you burn yourself, try getting some peppermint essential oil and put in the spot on your body you want to burn- it creates a burning sensation and won't do you any harm (and a drop on the tongue freshens breath!)...just don't get it in your eyes.
But me I'm feeling pretty good as of now, I'm not so sure when I got here or how, sun melting the fake smile away, I think you know I'll be okay

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rhiannon
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Post by rhiannon » Tue Feb 26, 2008 2:43 am

Just letting you know that I hope this list will provide me with some help, since everything I've tried up until now hasn't worked.

I'm even printing out the entire thing (all 16 pages of it!) and keeping it on my nightstand. :blush:
<center>N’oublie jamais que le corps n’oublie jamais.
Never forget that the body never forgets.
0 days SI free
[since 3/29/08]
Slips: 5


I screwed up. Again.

Maiden and Chaos
The Luscious Shadow
</center>

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han
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Post by han » Thu Mar 13, 2008 12:11 pm

This is a fantastic list! Thank you so much! Just reading it and seeing all the other options I have made me feel better - thank you! :-)

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amok
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Post by amok » Mon Mar 31, 2008 6:30 am

...woah effort. As others have said, just browsing that list was a distraction in itself :)

This one tickled me;

126. Play solitaire.

I've racked up hours playing solitaire to keep my hands busy/brain occupied by something menial. Must look like a right geek, playing that much solitaire, but whatever works. And it's fun!

Anyway, many thanks. If belated, going by the date of the last reply.

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Holi
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Post by Holi » Mon Mar 31, 2008 2:05 pm

:snail:
This was one of the first things I read when I joined, it's still amazing...
Find Peace

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BlacKat
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Post by BlacKat » Fri Apr 04, 2008 1:59 am

Some of mine:

Wear a special charm of some sort (religious symbol for me) that has to be taken off before you SI.

Carve the words on a piece of fruit, then eat it.

Also, would you consider a category for "things that still work in company"? Most of my SI takes place during the school day.

Oh yeah one more...I noticed that tape was in there already. Well, what I've found really helpful is red tape. That way it kind of looks like blood. I leave it on until it starts to irritate my skin just a little bit (not bad, just like wearing a scratchy shirt would do), then take it off. It leaves a mark that lasts for a bit, too.
Nox et Dies

No hugs, please. Pretty flowers, butterflies, and cups of tea are appreciated. So are cats. Or random stuff.

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xStarBright
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Post by xStarBright » Thu Apr 17, 2008 8:56 pm

:star:

This is amazing..

So amazing, that when I get some in, it deserves to be printed out on pink paper. ^-^

Take care,
Annie.
don't worry if i'm not here - i come and go. :cowsleep:
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ifevry1crd
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Post by ifevry1crd » Tue May 13, 2008 10:15 pm

wow this is an AWESOME list! thanx so much! i am 100% going to use it next time i need to SI. i didn't get to read through the whole list yet, i just got to skim it. i LOVED your idea of a compliments book, i'm starting one tonight. here are some ideas that i use, i'm not sure if they are already posted
1) reading my fave book
2) listening to my favorite songs, memorizing them, and then playing them on the guitar and/or drums
3) Look at my cuts and really think about why i want to do it, and if it's worth it
4) write down the thoughts in my head and try to see them as unjustifiable
5) watch a good movie/distract myself
6) counting my cuts and trying to remember why i have each one

thanx again!

~Lost but Trying to Find Me~
~sometimes we put up walls not to keep people out, but to see who cares enough to break them down~

Chey Kizoxie

Post by Chey Kizoxie » Tue May 20, 2008 1:33 pm

Playing with my cats and woodworking are good stress relievers for me.

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thekklteam
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Post by thekklteam » Sat Jun 07, 2008 8:28 am

Thanks for this! I was trying to find something that inspired me on here and by the time the list was getting to the anger releasing activities I was grinning ( I imagined a little cartoon version of me, a chibi basically, doing all of those ). XD

High five for the effort, and another one for being a geek! Knowledge is power. >.>

oakwren
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Post by oakwren » Tue Jun 17, 2008 5:44 pm

if anyone reads this list - there is so much hope. everyone of you deserves to live. laura i wish - i wish you'd read your own list woman. wish you'd reached out to someone , anyone but someone. i walk around and hear the birds and see the sky - you could have done that. you had so much to offer and did - the list, the posts, the kind words, the way you shared your views in a respectful manner - wish you hadn't of done it.

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Roxi
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Post by Roxi » Tue Jun 17, 2008 10:34 pm

I love this list ...printed it out sometime last year. Just reminds me that I will never have a good excuse as to why I SIed instead of doing something else.
My general rule now is that if I am really considering cutting, I am only allowed to if at least 20 of the coping mechanisms didn't work - I uauslly don't get past needing 2/3 of them.

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We are the girls with anxiety disorders, filled appointment books, five-year plans. We take ourselves very, very seriously. We are the peacemakers, the do-gooders, the givers, the savers. We are on time, overly prepared, well read, and witty, intellectually curious, always moving… We drink coffee, a lot of it. We are on birth control, Prozac, and multivitamins… We are relentless, judgmental with ourselves, and forgiving to others. We are the daughters of the feminists who said, “You can be anything,” and we heard, “You have to be everything." - Courtney Martin.

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tears1315
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Post by tears1315 » Sun Jun 22, 2008 2:25 am

this is an amazing list, i usually have a hard time with what i'm going to do to keep my mind off of wanting to hurt myself, but I really like the idea of having to actually get to the razors

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VowsOfSadness
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Post by VowsOfSadness » Mon Jul 07, 2008 5:37 am

This is one of the most resourceful documents on BUS. I only hope that Laura can be remembered as gathering together such a helpful post.
I hope she is at rest.
*Challenges welcome*
I always love a :lpurpstar:

I woke up this morning, I suddenly realized we're all in this together.

Drop by my place & say hi :)
Ask me anything!!!

I'm fully Recovered!

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alkatraz
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Post by alkatraz » Fri Aug 15, 2008 9:29 pm

That's quite a list. Reminded me that I really need to make a special box, just for moi!

Alk
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alkatraz
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Post by alkatraz » Sat Aug 23, 2008 5:19 am

Laura, I thought all these were just great, so I wrote a few down. Then came up with some of my own. I took all the slips of paper and put them into a box. When I'm edgy and need a distraction, I pull out a slip of paper and do whatever it tells me.

"Cross stitch. One hour" (not if needles make you triggery)
"Watch Mythbusters"
"write exactly how you're feeling"
"Free flow write for 10 minutes"
"play 'name that tune' on the iPod"
"Make a clothes pin doll"

There are more, but I love the mystery of pulling a randome something from a box. Thanks for the idea!!!

Alk
You've reached the Mistress of Mental Madness. Freak your friends, tweak your teachers and positively petrify your parents. I'm currently out of my mind, so please leave a message..... BEEP!!!

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