After

[Wednesdays]

• have you taken care of your physical wounds? if not, go do that now. we'll wait. Yes it happened yesterday
• what had happened just before? I was drinking and went to church.
• what were you thinking and feeling? I was thinking about Mothers Day, about having to have dinner with her and pretend that I don't hate her, and that she doesn't hate me. Keep up the game.
• 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? I think that the combination of drinking and church (triggering) isn't a good one. I've had problems with that before. Also Mothers Day and church. And just Mothers Day.
• what other ways of coping did you try besides self-harm? how well did they work? For the last six months or so I've been using work as a way to focus and avoid thinking about other things. I have a demanding job so that's easy to do, and it's easy to lose yourself in worl. I'm not sure how sustainable it is though.
• in retrospect, are there coping methods that you now realize might have helped? what were they? Stayed home and worked all day.
• name at least two things you will do to help yourself remember those coping methods if you end up in this situation again. I will remember. I thought about it yesterday but decided against it because I was very tired. I guess I just have to remember that when I don't work, things invariably fall apart.
• 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? It's not resolved. In the longer term I would like to see another counsellor. The last one didn't work out but there are a lot of things I'd like to talk over with someone. It's just too difficult to arrange so I keep putting it off.