1. List the ways that you self-harm: cutting, skin picking, burning
2. How do these behaviors help you survive? SI helps keep me from thinking about suicide. It is my safety mechanism.
3. How does this behavior give me a sense of control? I control when I hurt and how much I hurt.
4. How/Why does this behavior release endorphins (the happy factor) and make me feel better? SI makes me feel in control and the pain distracts me from whatever emotional turbulence I’m going through.
6. How does this behavior punish me? This behavior punishes me since I hurt myself after I do things something bad or am bad.
7. When and why did you start this behavior? I don’t remember. I think I may have started in 6th grade, but like I said, I can’t remember. I believe that I started hurting myself because I was sad/depressed and had been for a while. I didn't know what else to do, and it sounded like a pretty good idea. Plus, I was hoping that it would help.
Copy and paste this section, delete the lines that do not apply to you, leaving only the ones that do:
I want to express my rage at myself
I hate myself
I want to distract myself from other pain
I want to numb my feelings
I have a message to give that I cant' say directly
I am asking for help
I want to be rescued
I want to somehow atone for my sins
I am trying to express my pain
I am trying to bring my emotions under control
I am trying to prove that I am alive
I am trying to release emotional tension
I need a release valve
I need to get into a "neutral zone"
I am trying to buy myself time by focusing attention on physical rather than emotional pain
Now, think about your reason(s) for harming, list 3-5 things you could do instead.
1. I could go for a run
2.I could listen to music and draw
3. I could play some games
Which of the following are true for you? (Again delete the ones that do not apply for you)
Self-harm doesn't hurt anyone but me and it really doesn't hurt me either
It's no big deal and shouldn't upset anyone
I need to be punished for what I did
It just shows how bad a person I am
The scars are there for a reason, they remind me of my shame/need for punishment
FINALLY! I'm adding one more question to this list, what stage are you on in the 6 stages of recovery
I am on the fourth stage of recovery.
|