Before the next time

tools to help you assess your urges before you give in to them, and to help you understand and learn from slips after they happen. by posting here, you're saying that you are serious about exploring the feelings behind your self-harm in depth, whether you're ready to stop hurting yourself or not. to request posting access, click usergroups above and join before and after.

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Lynds
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Before the next time

Post by Lynds » Sat Jun 17, 2006 11:05 pm

I know I have just posted the answers to the AFTER questions but that was for my slip on Wednesday. These are for my urges that I'm having now. I found doing them really helpful, I feel a bit better cos of them...thank you. :bfly:

how will this situation or feeling change if i hurt myself?
It will ease for a minute then get worse cos I'll have to hide the marks

what will hurting myself bring to the situation? what will it take away from the situation?
It will provide a slight, temporary shift in feeling that will soon turn into self hatred and shame.

how do i want to feel about this in the long run? is hurting myself likely to get me closer to or farther from feeling that way?
Closer to feeling shit. I want to feel proud of myself that I dealt with the urge in a possitive way. I don't want to feel like I gave in

if hurting myself seems like my best option right now, how long will the relief it brings last? what will i do then?
It doesn't seem like the best option at all. Relief for me lasts a few minutes at the most then along comes the guilt...

what is something i could do now instead of hurting myself? how will it change the situation i'm in? how long will that change last, and what will i do then?
I could write a letter to my friend in Australia who knows all about my problems and is great to talk to (even if it's in a letter form). It will make me happier cos I miss her and I enjoy writing to her. If I last the night without SIing then the feeling will carry me through till the morning and hopefully all of tomorrow.

how will i feel tomorrow if i hurt myself? how will i feel tomorrow if i do the other thing i came up with?
If I SI I will feel ashamed, worthless and shit tomorrow. If I don't, I will feel proud of myself and victorious.

what do i really want to do right now? how can i best honor the self-protective instinct that has me wanting to self-injure right now?
I could write my letter and tell my mate all about the stuff that's bothering me (even if I don't send it and write a more lighthearted one tomorrow). I DON'T WANT TO SLIP AGAIN. I need to think about why exactly I'm feeling so miserable right now...



Why do I feel I need to hurt myself? What has brought me to this point?
Having a stressful week. Missing my bf. Missing my mate in Australia. Worrying about my other mate who's in trouble...I feel I need to SI cos it's always been my main coping mechanism

Have I been here before? What did I do to deal with it? How did I feel then?
Hell yeah I've been here before! I've gone both ways-SIed and felt rubbish about it and also NOT SIed and felt good but sometimes still sad and issues still felt unresolved...

What I have done to ease this discomfort so far? What else can I do that won't hurt me?
Watched a DVD. Answering these questions is making me think more seriously about how I will feel tomorrow (which is what I want to concentrate on otherwise I think I might give in). I think i will probably write to my mate.

How do I feel right now?
Slightly calmer but scared that I might slip but I'm feeling more confident and stronger having answered the Qs.

How will I feel when I am hurting myself?
Numb but exhilarated at the same time. Unstoppable. Strong but weak. Fierce.

How will I feel after hurting myself? How will I feel tomorrow morning?
Sad. Dissapointed. Guilty. Scared that I will do it again. Shame.

Can I avoid this stressor, or deal with it better in the future?
I will try to...

Do I need to hurt myself?
NO. NO. NO. I DON'T NEED TO HURT MYSELF. (that's me trying to reinforce my belief!) It's stupid: I know I don't need to and I don't want to but part of me is just thinking but how else can I cope even though I 've just been through all that with myself...dear oh dear oh dear. It almost make sme laugh...which makes me feel better actually! *sighs as is exasperated with self!*

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mallie
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Post by mallie » Fri Jun 23, 2006 1:09 pm

I'm sorry this has gone without a reply for so long. Hopefully this is still useful in some way
Why do I feel I need to hurt myself? What has brought me to this point?
Having a stressful week. Missing my bf. Missing my mate in Australia. Worrying about my other mate who's in trouble...I feel I need to SI cos it's always been my main coping mechanism
...
Hell yeah I've been here before! I've gone both ways-SIed and felt rubbish about it and also NOT SIed and felt good but sometimes still sad and issues still felt unresolved...
It sounds like you've got a pretty good idea of things that are a problem for you right now, and in terms of the idea of writing to your friend in Australia it sounds like a good way to be able to feel a connection and "deal with" that situation (of missing them). This sounds like a way to not-SI and resolve the situation - can you think of ideas for other things that are tough right now?

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Lynds
meeting the neighbors
meeting the neighbors
Posts: 425
Joined: Thu May 18, 2006 6:19 pm
Location: Sussex, England

Post by Lynds » Fri Jun 23, 2006 7:24 pm

Hi

thanks for the reply, I wasn't actually expecting anyone to answer it so thanks! :D
Yeah I know what the problem is I just need to try and change the way I think and deal with it! Quite easy then!!
I've got the weekend off and I now don't have to travel up to my bfs so I plan to chill tomorrow and then he is coming home on Sunday for a couple of days so that will cheer me up!
Thanks again :bfly:

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