I volunteered with a mobile library in Zambia when I was 18 and then again when I was 19. It was a good experience but I do regret going at a time when I was quite unwell, as that hindered my enjoyment and the enjoyment of other volunteers =S I would love to do something like that again now that I'm well as I think I'd get an awful lot more out of it!
In terms of confidence, it wasn't the right thing to boost my confidence but I think that was because I chose the wrong type of activity. We were having to come up with creative and engaging activities for the children to do that related to a book we had chosen from the library and at that time I didn't feel confident doing that and so being in an unfamiliar place with unfamiliar people having to do that didn't do great things for my confidence! Because there was quite a lot of structure, it wasn't too awful social anxiety wise as we had certain things to discuss at certain times, but it was still probably a step too far for me at that time.
I'm sorry that this is a very negative account; I'm sure there are many others who have a much more positive experience though! I don't know you or your circumstances, but what I'd suggest having a think about is how you'd feel being away from everyone that you know and what kind of activity/volunteer work you would really enjoy doing. Since you're on a self harm site it seems fair to assume that you might self harm and depending on where you were going, if you didn't think you could not self-ham for the duration of your trip you'd need to think about wound care and what would happen if you needed treatment for a wound.
Once again, I'm really sorry for being so negative! Unfortunately I'm not able to be more positive about my own experience, but I do think if you choose the right trip at the right time, it could be a really beneficial and confidence-boosting experience :)
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