Self-harm is a paradox. The pain stops the pain.

It takes us out of our heads and into our bodies. We go from thinking to feeling. Just like when we have an accident, our body releases chemicals that make us feel better but this doesn’t last long, and so the cycle begins.

I don’t believe self-harm is ever done for attention. There are painful emotions beneath the surface that we don’t understand or have the tools to deal with. And so we find our own way. 

What we really need is for someone to hear us, to accept where we are at and to help us understand our feelings.  We need to find the need that is not being met. And then we can begin to explore other ways of moving forward.