Lets get talking!

Sorry it’s been a little while since I last updated my blog. I have been finding it hard to think of things to write about. It was until last night I had nothing at all to write about and no inspiration either until Aisling gave me a list of different things that I could write about. After going through the list I found something that I wanted to write about but it wasn’t linked directly to one of the topics that I was given.

What I am going to write about in this post I guess is something that most people know about but nobody talks about it. In this blog post I am going to write about self-harm. As I was writing this blog post I was worried about publishing it to be honest and I don’t really know why. I think it was because I was scared of what people might think and if it might cause people to get upset. I don’t mean for this to be triggering to anybody and I don’t mean for this to upset anybody.

Self harming is the deliberate harm to you. This can be done in many different ways. Some people cut while others burn or scratch. There are many different ways that people self harm but most people who do self harm do it for the same reason, to cope with what is going on in their life at the time. This topic is very close to me because I know of people who have self harmed and the struggle that they go through on a daily basis to try and not self harm. People often think that if you self –harm you are suicidal but that is not true and most people who do self-harm are only looking for a release and no to die. There is often stigmas attached to people who self-harm and many are also judged because they do it and excluded from groups of people.

Many people who have self-harmed in the past are ashamed of it and try to cover up and hid their scares because of fears that the might be judged. Most people keep it a secret until they have ad enough and realized that they dont need this anymore and that they can change and that things will get better. Many people who self-harm may also be depressed and can feel ashamed that they are but there is a quote that I think is really important for any one suffering fro depression and it is " depression is not a sign of weakness but a sign that you have been strong for too long" I hope that this quote will comfort some people who struggle from depression.

Most people self harm as a way of relief and expressing their feelings. Many people find it hard to talk about their feeling and eventually it all gets to be too much for them and they take all of their anger and frustration out on themselves. Its certainly not a good way of dealing with things but for some people it is the only way that they know how. Often for people who do self-harm it can turn into an addiction depending on self harming to help get you through the day and to communicate with people how you feel.

The aim of writing this blog post was to help raise awareness about self harm not just in Ireland but all over the world. Many people know about self harm and it is a very important topic and people need to talk about it but I feel that people don’t want to talk about it.  I sometimes get the feeling that people are scared to talk about these kind of topics but if we don’t talk about them then we will never be able to move on and provide more help to the people who are struggling from self –harm. Most people who self-harm feel alone and ashamed but they are not alone there are many people all over the world in the same position as they are.

For anybody who is reading this blog post who self harms just remember that you are not alone and that it is never too late to get help. No one chooses to self harm but you can choose to get help. There are many places around Ireland including Pieta house. To find out more about self harm click here.

Self Injury awareness day is on the first of March.

Not many people like to talk about self-harm or self-injury and I feel that it is time more people should start!