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?
it won't - what will hurting myself bring to the situation? what will it take away from the situation?
I don't know - 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 don't want to feel anything about it - if hurting myself seems like my best option right now, how long will the relief it brings last? what will i do then?
Its not the best option and the relief doesn't last and then I'll feel worse - 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?
take a shower, get dressed, take my son out to breakfast
It'll get me out of my head for awhile
I don't know - how will i feel tomorrow if i hurt myself? how will i feel tomorrow if i do the other thing i came up with?
like a stupid fuckin nutcase bitch failure
still frustrated, tense, burning inside, fucked, but a nice person, like if I pretend to be normal, maybe I am or can be or remember that I AM - 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?
think of when I was a little kid, I wouldn't want to hurt me back then
urges aren't necessarily the enemy. they happen for reasons, and they're an expression of a desire to stay alive and stay sane and keep coping. remember that.
More Before Questions To Answer
- Why do I feel I need to hurt myself? What has brought me to this point?
fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuckk
I could write a book, but can't or won't because I'm too ignorant because I quit going to school much around 10 years old and moved around enough to get away with it and stole my school records - Have I been here before? What did I do to deal with it? How did I feel then?
yes
I either cut or I fuckin bucked up and kept my shit together
aujjjljf uytjyd - What I have done to ease this discomfort so far? What else can I do that won't hurt me?
made 2 cups of coffee
go take a shower and
take the puppies outside to play and pee when they wake up and
take my son out to breakfast - How do I feel right now?
like crying but won't or can't - How will I feel when I am hurting myself?
good and bad - How will I feel after hurting myself? How will I feel tomorrow morning?
good and bad - Can I avoid this stressor, or deal with it better in the future?
therapy'd probably be good or not or medication or not I don't know - Do I need to hurt myself?
Remember you don't have to answer all the questions if you don't feel up to it.
