[Alcohol Induced Altruism]

Yes. I think so.

I have had the shoe on many a foot in the situation and my thoughts are as follows.

I've previously told a teacher about a friend who self harmed, whether that was right or not - you'd have to ask her. At the time I was convinced it was for her own good and the right thing to do. Now I think what I did was selfish (yes, selfish) because if her opinion was, telling is wrong, I had no right to contradict that and assume I knew better.

Now I think firstly that other people do not have the right to decide what's for the best for someone else, there could be things you do not know about the situation and you may easily be hindering rather than helping - moreover - I feel that, unless this person has asked for help, or unless their life is in definite danger (that is, they die if you don't "tell") everyone should have the right to do what they want with their own body. I think people have the right to self harm, and they have the right to their own privacy too.

Sure, self harm might be bad for people, it might be making their lives worse, but it also happens to be their own body and I think this needs to be respected.

Another reason, is that I try my hardest to treat people as I would want to be treated. I would take personal offense, if someone 'told' one of my secrets to someone else - especially if they had told with the intent of interfering (or "helping") with my life. If they just needed to talk to someone about it, I would understand a lot more than if they thought it was for my own good.

Many of my friends endanger their health in various ways - if she (I say she lightly , it just happens a lot of my friends are female) smokes, self harms, has an ED, if she'd OD'd or on drugs or if she's drank herself so stupid she can't even walk - I wont betray their trust because it's their life, their body, and as a friend I think I am obliged to do their bidding in keeping their secrets even when I think they might be wrong. Because I am not always right, and I don't have the right to say my opinion is worth more and therefore I can overwrite theirs.
I expect the same treatment back, and to be honest, if I didn't get it I wouldn't consider them a friend.

What an essay!