Coping With Self-Harm

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Coping With Self-Harm

June 3,2022 By: Mansi poddar

Self-harm is a short-term coping mechanism for dealing with distress brought upon by impulsiveness. In the heat of the moment, you’re so desperate for relief that you’ll do anything, including things you know you shouldn’t—such as cutting, reckless sex, dangerous driving, and binge drinking. It may even feel like you don’t have a choice. They make you feel better, even if just for a brief moment. But the long-term costs are extremely high.

· A quick way to break would be to concentrate on your breathing, taking slow, deep breaths.

· If you feel things might get out of your hands, shift your focus to something else. Distract yourself – call a friend, watch something relaxing on tv, go for a brisk walk/jog, put on some music and dance- channel that energy into doing something else.

· Write about how you feel and what you can do to make yourself feel better.

· Keep feel-good cards handy. Write down affirmations and positive thoughts about yourself and read them out loud when you feel self-harming tendencies.

· Contact loved ones if these feelings are intense. Emotional and physical support from your loved ones will help you get a grip over yourself

· If you are regularly hurting yourself, you MUST seek therapy. A psychotherapist will help you learn how to stop these behaviors and manage emotions. The ability to tolerate distress will help you press pause when you have the urge to act out. Instead of reacting to difficult emotions with self-destructive behaviors, you will learn to handle them while remaining in control of the experience.