slips are chances to learn. you figure out what stresses are still too hard for you and you can work on how you'll deal with them next time you run into them. so instead of beating yourself up, take action.
- have you taken care of your physical wounds? if not, go do that now. we'll wait.
Yeah, I guess. - what had happened just before?
I had this sudden, out-of-nowhere feeling of loneliness and abandonment and terror. - what were you thinking and feeling?
Uh. See above? - why did you end up hurting yourself then instead of some other time? was there an event that was the final straw? what was it?
... See number 2 again? - how did the situation get to the final straw stage? trace it back through the events that led up to the last event. look for some point at which you could have made a different decision and not arrived at the final straw.
I have no clue. - were there outside factors like drugs, alcohol, being off your meds, lack of sleep, etc? can you address those in the future? how?
Maybe lack of sleep and stress. - what other ways of coping did you try besides self-harm? how well did they work?
Posting on BUS only got me one reply, I tried staying online as long as possible, but neither obviously worked out. - in retrospect, are there coping methods that you now realize might have helped? what were they?
Hmmm... nothing, really. It was definitely happening last night whether I wanted to or not. - name at least two things you will do to help yourself remember those coping methods if you end up in this situation again.
- how do you feel about the situation that led to self-harm now? is it resolved? if not, what are some steps you might take toward resolution?
- are you likely to be in that emotional place again? how will you recognize it when you're in that situation?
- what will you try before you resort to self-harm if you're in that situation again? list three specific things you will commit to trying.