write down the shadow that's hiding behind the urge. look at it. ask yourself:
- how will this situation or feeling change if i hurt myself?
i will feel more shame. the marks on my body will take longer to heal. i will feel discouraged like there is no hope and i might as well do worse. - what will hurting myself bring to the situation? what will it take away from the situation?
i will get rid of the urge for the moment. it will make me want to do "more severe" things to myself that i havn't done in months. - 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?
i want to feel like i grew from this experience. like i made it through successfully. if i hurt myself i will feel like i've made no progress. like i've taken a step backwards. - if hurting myself seems like my best option right now, how long will the relief it brings last? what will i do then?
it's weird to say, but the relief doesn't even last longer than the prep to hurt myself. not anymore, if it ever did. it's a let down. if i do, afterwards i would probably go onto other things that are more dangerous and/or pop a bunch of pills, drink......something - 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've already put scar treatment on my old marks. sometimes that helps. i should try to go to sleep. - 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 hurt myself i will be ashamed and not want to see people that i have been honest with. if i don't, i can tell my friends that know the things i struggle with that i made it through. - 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 want to protect myself from my feelings and fears.....
i can protect myself from emotional abuse and remove myself from the situation
More Before Questions To Answer
- Why do I feel I need to hurt myself? What has brought me to this point?
i've only got 3 days without scratching myself. this is the first time i've ever even gotten one day. so it's weird. i feel insecure with out it. i havn't done other kinds of si in over 4 months......also the longest i've ever gone. i've done this since i was a little girl......it's hard to let go of - Have I been here before? What did I do to deal with it? How did I feel then?
yes and no......when i quit pills and when i quit other si behaviors i called people and wrote about my feelings. i felt afraid and skeptical during the urges, but if i managed to not do it, i felt so much better after. - What I have done to ease this discomfort so far? What else can I do that won't hurt me?
i put medicine on old scars. played with my pets......i should probably go to sleep. - How do I feel right now?
tired........ - How will I feel when I am hurting myself?
paranoid, numb and manic at the same time - How will I feel after hurting myself? How will I feel tomorrow morning?
ashamed......like i failed - Can I avoid this stressor, or deal with it better in the future?
i don't know - Do I need to hurt myself?
no.....
