15-09-2010, 03:58 AM
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Join Date: Aug 2007
I am currently:
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Things to do instead of hurting yourself.
I found this list online and thought maybe you guys might find some of the ideas useful.
These might help when you are feeling angry/ restless:
� Scribble on photos of people in magazines
� Viciously stabbing an orange!
� Throwing an apple/pair of socks against the wall
� Having a pillow fight with the wall
� Screaming very loudly
� Tearing apart newspapers, photos, magazines or phonebooks
� Go to the gym, dance, (exercise)
� Listening to music and singing along loudly
� Draw a picture of what is making you angry
� Beat up a bear!
� Pop bubble wrap
� Pop balloons
� Splattering paint
� Scribbling on a piece of paper until the whole page is black
� Throwing darts at a dartboard
� Go for a run
� Write your feelings on paper then rip it up
� Repetitively write down how you feel e.g. angry
� Use stress relievers
These work by giving a sensation (instead of pain) but without hurting yourself
� Hold ice in your hands/against arm/ in mouth
� Run your hands under freezing cold water
� Snap a rubber band/ hair band against your wrist
� Clap your hands until it stings
� Wax your legs!
� Drink freezing cold water
� Splash your face with cold water
� Put PVA glue on your hands then peel it off
� Massage where you want to hurt yourself
� Take a hot shower/bath
� Jump up and down to get some sensation in your feet.
These work by distracting you/ taking up some time
� Say 'I'll self harm in 15 minutes if I still want to' then after 15 minutes the urge might have gone. If not, see if you can go another 15.
� Colouring your hair
� Count up to ten getting louder until you are screaming
� Sing on the karaoke machine
� Complete something you've been putting off
� Take up a new hobby
� Make a cup of tea
� Telling and laughing at jokes
� Play solitaire
� Count up to 500 or 1000
� Surf the net
� Make as many words out of your full name as possible
� Count ceiling tiles/lights
� Search ridiculous things on the web (i recommend http://www.stumbleupon.com/ )
� Colour co-ordinate your wardrobe
� Play with a slinky
� Play with toys
� Go to the park and play on the swings etc.
� Call up an old friend
� People watching
� Carry safe things in your pockets rather than sharps
� Do school work
� Play a musical instrument
� Watch a film/TV
� Paint your nails
� Colouring in
� Alphabetise your CDs/books
� Cooking
� Origami (to occupy your hands)
� Doodling on sheets of paper
� Dressing up
� Computer games
� Write out lyrics to your favourite song
� Sport
� Read a book/magazine
� Do a crossword
These ones are just weird or funny- if nothing else they will make you laugh!
� Crawl on all fours and bark like a dog.
� Make weird noises (eg. Animal noises)
� Run around the garden screaming
� Laughing for no reason whatsoever
� Make funny faces in a mirror
These might help when you are feeling sad/guilty/want to 'punish' yourself
� Congratulate yourself on each minute you go by without self harming
� Drawing/painting
� Look at the sky
� Instead of punishing yourself by self harming, punish yourself by not self harming
� Call a friend and ask for company
� Buy a cuddly toy (collect them maybe)
� Give someone a hug
� Put a face mask on
� Watch a favourite TV programme/ film
� Eat something ridiculously sweet!
� Cuddle a soft toy (eg. One of the bears in the kitchen)
� Remember a happy moment and relive it for a while in your head
� Treat yourself to some chocolate
� Try to imagine the future and plan things you want to do
� Look at things that are special to you (eg. Photos)
� Be nice to someone, makes you feel good about yourself eg. Compliment someone
� Make sculptures (clay/plasticine)
� Watch fish
� Let yourself cry
� Play with a pet
� Have/give a massage
These might help if you are feeling scared/panicky/unreal
� See, hear and feel -5 things, then 4, then 3 etc (It makes you focus on your surroundings and works to calm you down.)
� Listen to soothing music
� Meditate
� Name all of your soft toys
� Hug a pillow
� Hyper focus on something
� Do a 'reality check list' ,write down all the things you can list about where you are now (e.g. It is the 15th September 2010, I'm a room and everything is going to be alright
� Give someone a hug (with permission!)
� Drink herbal tea
� Crunch ice
� Hug a tree
� Go for a walk (only if it feels safe)
� Feel your pulse (to prove you're alive)
� Cuddle a soft toy
These might put you off the idea of harming yourself:
� Think about how you don't want scars
� Treat yourself nice
� Remember you don't have to hurt yourself just because the thought comes into your head
� Create a safe place for you to go
� Acknowledge that self harm is harmful behaviour- say 'I want to hurt myself' rather than 'I want to cut'
� Repeat to yourself 'I don't deserve to be hurt' even if you don't believe it
� Remember that you always have the choice not to cut- it's up to you what you do
� Think about how you will feel afterwards, eg. Guilty?
� Remind yourself that the urge to self harm is impulsive. You will only feel like cutting for short bursts of time.
� Avoid temptation
� Get your friends to make you friendship bracelets- wear them around your wrists to remind you of them when you want to cut
� Be with other people
� Make your own list of things to do instead of self harm.
� Make a list of your positive things and why you don't deserve to be hurt
These might help if you want to see blood:
� Draw on yourself with red pen or body paint
� Cover yourself with plasters where you want to cut
� Henna
� Make 'wounds' with make-up eg. Lipstick!
� Put on fake tattoos
Confused: to help you work through and understand your feelings:
� Phoning someone, talking
� Make a collage of how you feel
� Negotiate with yourself
� Identify what is hurting so bad that you need to express it in this way
� Write in a diary
� Try to work out why you feel like self harming
� Fill in a questionnaire 'Why do I feel like self harming?'
� Talk to a member of staff
� Make lists of everything (e.g. blessings in your life)
� Make a notebook of song lyrics that you relate to
� Call a helpline
� Write a letter to someone telling them how you feel (you don't have to send it if you decide not to.)
Last edited by squirrelspit : 15-09-2010 at 04:43 AM.
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