Do you count how long since last si?
 

If you do then why? I'm just curious really because although I know I haven't self-harmed for a while I've never counted and couldn't tell you how long it's been. I don't care to know really. I feel a bit weird because I have a different attitude to a lot here. I say that I've stopped which is mostly true but when I slip up I don't feel bad about it and I don't feel that it's the end of the world. I don't feel the need to count days, weeks or months because it just isn't that important.

So yes, answer the poll and tell me I'm normal :P

Yes I do ... the reason is because I used to do it the same way you do and that worked for a while... but then I started to slip up a lot and because I didn't count I convinced myself that they were just slip-ups. Then one day I thought about how frequent these "slip-ups" were and I found I had them at least once a week (which is a bit more than a slip up)... so now I really decided to stop and I chose a good date (1st March) and now I count because it makes me less likely to have a slip up because then I think " I've done x months without and I would break my promise to myself if I did it' and that has helped me until now :)

Hope this made some sense :)

I don't count it, but I can normally work it out once it's been a while.

Like, "I know it was the week that my parents went away with Ted and Sue, which was about 2 months ago, so it must've been about 2 months" kinda thing.

Or, "it was before that exam, so that makes it 45 days".

But like, I won't count every single day, I'll work it out roughly when it's been a couple of months or so.

Saying that, I have no idea when my last cut was, but I can probably find out if I really wanted to, through posts on here or asking the person I tell.

Make sense, or am I totally crazy?

It does make sense both of you

Chels I kinda do that, well I know the last time was around christmas/new year but it just seems that others have the actual dates and it makes me feel I'm weird for not knowing the precise date. It's also something I watche in desperate housewives about alcoholism and Bree told the AA dude she didn't know the date of her last drink and he said that all alcoholics know that and I guess it'd be similar for self-harmers and stuff.

I don't count because if everyday you count, everyday you think about it at least once so it stays in your daily life.

I think that counting days works for some people, however I know it doesn't work for me.

I mean like currently I'll go a month or two, then slip up for a week/couple of days/maybe just one, and then go another month or two. So if I was counting, I'd be like, where do I start counting from, you know?

[*Hopes that makes sense*]

i count. i had a cycle of stop then slip then stop for about 4 months before i actuallly quit. i like be able to say i've quite for 11 months and counting.

I don't count because for me it isn't how long i've been without it.
it's about stopping so that i never even have to think about it as a resort.
i guess it's strange, because i can never fully stop thinking about it.
but i mean, when it gets to the point that everything is ****,
but i'm still don't cut.
that's what it's about for me

i dont count as each day passes by but sometimes it pops up in my mind so i just remember but i dont try to

I do, because I like to keep tabs on how long I've been SI free

I count (not every day) but I always know how long its been. Its something to be proud of for me. My friends like to know whats going on and theyre always really proud when I can tell them that I've managed 6 months so far! Its gives me something to aim for, I'm working towards the next milestone. It would drive me mad if I didn't know how I was doing. I stopped on the 1st January 2007 so I always know how many months :)

Counting never really helped me, because every time I looked at my signature I'd see something that reminded me of self harm, and as long as I was being reminded, I wasn't going to stop.

I don't know when I last intentionally self harmed, but I do know that it was years ago.

I normally keep a rough idea in my head so if its been a while i can think "oooh its been *so long* since i last did it" i can be all proud :)

I have done in the past but I am not bothering atm because I am only getting a couple of days before I mess up again and being so frequent there seems no point in me saying to myself I am trying to stop because I am clearly not very good at it.

I did count when I got to about three weeks, then I actually feel like its something worth remembering. Also it can help me keep going without it.

It depends on how I feel and if I have anything worth stopping for or anyone taking any interest in how I'm doing. I dont see anybody anymore so nobody can ever find out so it doesnt matter. I could be dead before anyone would notice the SH.

x Marie x

I count because stopping cutting was the ahrdest thing i have ever had to do and each day i go without is a small victory. I am over 2 years now, but still now the exact date (812 days ago). I do that to remind myself how far i've come. i wish i could just forget about ever cutting, but the truth it, i am who i am because of what i've been through (good and bad) and i am proud of who i am. Dismissing part of my past would be being ashamed of it. and while i would never cut again, i know that at the time it saved my life. I count to show myself that I am ok and will always be. it;s jsut something that helps me

I dont count. I know when i last did it, I dont count that time tho, but i have no idea how long it was before that. i know it has been about a yeah and a half since i was doing it a lot but not too sure.
I think i mostly dont count because if i do its kinda reminder of it and makes me think about it more. But i see that a lot of people would use it as a type of motivation to quit or to try stop for longer

Yes i count. The only reason i know when exactly i stopped is becuase it was a week after my friends funeral. I keep it in mind so i dont slip up too much. But when i do slip up, i dont stop counting. I dont feel bad and i dont beat myself up about it. I dont count days, but i do celebrate anniversaries. It gives me something to look forward to. That probably makes little sense.

What ever works for you is best. You arent weird at all.

I write down the last time.....mainly b/c when I'm triggered, I can say to myself that's it's been so many weeks or months and if I made it that far I can go even further........keeping track helps me

heh...hopefully that makes sense...

I used to count how long it's been, but I quit doing so because it was actually a trigger for me, now I just try not to think about it. I assume it's been about 3 months since I have last cut myself...

I don't count anymore.

I do, but only in a vague way. I can say it's been about two months but I don't know for definite. Not thinking about it so hard helps.

I don't personally...as then its on my mind...and if/when i fall i feel so much worse...but i know its been a while

I did for a while but after 2 years i lost count.

i dont count anymore
but i know how long its been

Every week or so if it's been a while since i've cut i tend to work out how long it's been. I find sometimes it helps me not to cut again because i want to not give in for longer than before

I don't do the whole '1 day cut free' thing. I used to...
Now I cut so infrequently that I don't see the point

I count every day. Makes it seem worth while for me =) xx

I don't count.
I used to, but found i was thinking about it more so it wasn't helping.
I know roughly how long it's been though

I never have counted, I SI when I need to and don't feel guilty about doing it, maybe that means I'm not trying to stop. But I sort of have stopped in the sense that now I only do it when I need to, when SI is the safest option in my mind and that is quite rare. I don't think it'd be helpful for me to count, it would make it into something desirable in my mind.

I count usually if I feel like I am going to SI sometime in the near future. If I don't count, then that's usually a good sign; when I have to try and remember how long ago my last cut was. (Means I'm not constantly thinking about it)

x

I do count, because it makes me more motivated to carry on. If I didn't count then I would be more likely to slip up

i can work out how long it was and i know the precise date because i made a diary entry the same night so i know it was march 18th 2005. having said that, i dont tally off each day, i sit here and work out by the calendar on my pc how long it has been. mand x

i don't count, but i know i hv the counter on my signature but that is my only way and i try not to look at it often

to an extent :)
Like when i reach 3 month or a specific time period
x

I count. I put the last date down somewhere to remind me. It's usually like "You have came this far, why mess it up?" It works some of the time, other times it does not. I think counting is worth it for me

Normally, no. If it's measured in months, like my last time I almost reached 7 months, then yes. Normally I don't keep track though, I just do it when I need it, and if I don't, I don't.

I count, it is one of the things, if the only thing, that keeps me going. I never counted days though, it is to small of a time measure for me. In the beginning I counted weeks, and then after about two months, I started counting months.

well...for me it hasn't even been a month yet...
so yes i count each day.
i kind of wish i didn't though because it makes it seem like it takes forever..
but nearly 4 weeks for me anyway =)

I dont count cos simply I forget to and if i did it would probably give me a reason to start thinkin bout it again.

I said yes but i don't count day to day. I know roughly the last time and i work it out like that. I think i underlined the date in my diary.

i used to..but i ended up stopping. it just stressed me out soo much, because i was always thinking about it becuz i used to write it on my white board, and every day was numbered. i got up to 200 and something..and then finally relized that i was so stressed over slipping up and losing all that time and all those days and going back to 0 that i eventually stopped counting, and its almost diasppeared from my daily life, and its not on my mind constantly anymore

I keep track of when i do SI because I always aim to go longer without each time adn although I know that if I slip up before the given time I will be a bit annoyed but not as much as I used to be. i'm not sure whether to say Im better now or not...but I do know i am getting there!

I think either yes or no is perfectly normal.
It just depends on personality and ways of dealing with things.
Personally, I do count.
I guess it's to remind me that I did it.
To be able to be proud of myself that it was a long time ago. (9 and a half months!)
But equally I guess that it is potentially damaging and obcessive to count.
However, I think some people need to count, but will be able to stop counting one day.

Hmmm, did that even make sense?
xxx

I do. It allows me to see how far I have come with my recovery *shrugs*
Nic
xxx

i used not to but i have a reminder now look down below !

I don't count but I keep a note of when I last cut in my sig so if I'm struggling I can remind myself how long it's been.

I used to write it on my calender, but on a hard month it gets covered in "SI" and is negative to look at..

yes i do.
and since my best friends know i used to cut, they give me like congrats when i hit another month anniversary.
i think it's really nice of them and it shows me how much they really do respect that part of me and care.

I don't really count. I couldn't tell you the last exact time, except that it was before i started uni, so i know it's coming up three years, but couldn't tell you exactly. i think perhaps thinking about how long it's been can make the need to do it again stronger, so i stopped counting a long time ago.

I don't count, but I know how long it's been. I only know because some crazy stuff went down that day. Other than that I don't like counting day to day though, because it gets too depressing when I slip up.