Hi everyone 👋
We wanted to check-in and have a chat about self-harm. We thought we'd share some helpful resources and support options for anyone who might be doing it tough and coping with self-harm at the moment.
There are many reasons people might engage in self-harming behaviours. Self-harm can be a way of trying to relieve, control, or express tough feelings, thoughts or memories. For some, self-harm can be a way to get through feelings of pain or loneliness, or it might be used as a form of punishment when dealing with feelings of guilt or shame.
Some find that the physical pain of self-harm helps them to temporarily relieve emotional pain. In this way, self-harm can be a coping strategy that someone uses to help them continue to live. However, it is important to be aware that self-harm can be dangerous, and can sometimes lead to serious physical and mental health consequences. If you are ever feeling unsafe or need urgent help, please call 000.
It can be difficult to know what to do and how to cope, but know that help is available. There are many things you can do to help manage self-harm, ranging from seeking professional support to practising self-help techniques. See resources below:
RESOURCES ➡️
- What is Self-harm?
- Self-help techniques to help manage self-harm
- My Green Box: a way to manage urges to self-harm
- 10 tips for coping with the hard stuff
- How to help a friend who self-harms
- Calm Harm - a free app designed to help manage self harm.
- My Compass - a free online self-led program for people experiencing mild to moderate depression, anxiety or stress, or for those who simply want to build good mental health
- Face-to-face support options - doctor, psychologist, or other mental health professional.
- Phone and chat support options - Kids Helpline, Lifeline and eheadspace
- Mental Health Carers Australia - for friends and family members supporting people through depression and other mental health disorders.
- Check out this article to learn about other support services for self-harm.
Feelings of shame might be holding you back from reaching out for support. Or perhaps you haven’t found an alternative way of coping, or support service that works for you yet - different approaches work for different people. Don’t be too hard on yourself, and remember that there is always someone out there who cares about your well-being. Don’t be afraid to ask for help and to tell someone how you’re feeling. No matter how tough things are, you never have to face it alone.
Remember that the Online Community is a safe space to chat about what you're going through. We always here for you 💛 We ask that you just bear in mind our community guidelines around chatting about self-harm when posting about your experience, thank you 😊
