Do you ever hurt yourself when you’re feeling overwhelmed? If so, you’re not alone. For many people, self-harm is a way of coping with problems. It may help you express feelings you can’t put into words, distract you from your life, or release emotional pain. Afterwards, you probably feel better—at least for a little while. But then the painful feelings return, and you feel the urge to get relief by hurting yourself again. Self-harm may feel like an addiction. You want to stop, but you don’t know how. Or you may feel like you can’t give it up because it’s the only thing keeping you from completely breaking down. If that’s how you feel, know this: you deserve to feel better, and you can get there without hurting yourself. There is help out there, if you want to stop. Whatever you’re facing in your life, you can learn how to not just cope with it, but overcome it.
