Dear Jack,
I’m having some problems in my life and doing some things that make me feel better at the moment, but then awful later. I haven’t told anyone, but sometimes I just need to get the pain out so I hurt myself by cutting my arms, sometimes my legs. I feel like it’s the only thing I have control over in my life. I know I’m not the only person who does this, but I don’t know why I do it or how to stop. Please help.
Sue
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Dear Sue,
Thank you for being brave enough to tell me about your very personal problem. Self-Injurious Behaviors (SIB’S) are a desire to injure. It is a signal to pay attention to what you are feeling. It is driven by something deep-seated; a feeling, thought or memory that perhaps is so submerged you may not even be aware of it. It is an urge, not an impulse that comes from a thought; has a purpose and is a choice.
It’s important to talk to someone who can help you understand these things; learn alternative behaviors and know that every feeling does not have to be responded to with a negative physical action.
Please call your teen help line, the Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) or some other mental health resource in order to see someone who can help you help yourself.
You could always call my mom, Toni, at the CAC and she would talk to you too. Her phone # is: (541) 734-5437 X 107.
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