Advice needed

@willingSky9585

I would reach out for support, like you are doing here, or for me, I used to call the crisis helpline. They will talk to anybody and you can free to open up. If you are having strong urges that they might suggest that you go to the emergency room and go with the week long program and after care. It really helped me. I finally got the nerve to call and then after a few calls I felt comfortable about being honest with them. Give yourself a lot of credit for reaching out already. I know how bad anxiety is and it has brought me to the edge many times. I used to suffer badly and I need the help so I followed through and they admitted me to the hospital and tried to help me, and it was amazingly uplifting and super supportive. You can tag me anytime just put "@Juliak1968" in your message somewhere and it will alert me when you do. Hold your head up and find good distractions so you can occupy your mind with something positive. When I stay real busy trying to think of ways to improve my life and slowly push myself into showing results. Now I've lost about30 pounds in the past 8 months and I'm feeling better. I use medical marajauna and its part of my distraction and I like the calmness it gives me. I can think and I schedule and take care of all my important things that pertain to my expenses. and I visit 7Cups many times each day to check my messages. Try as many Listeners as you want until you find some that you can relate with and ask if you can go long term with them so you can check in several times a week or more!~ Take good care (Self Care)!

Blessings, Day

@willingSky9585

This is a great question to ask because everyone has different coping skills.  I have utilized journaling a lot.  It’s a good distraction and gives me a place to express the feelings that I’m wanting to release through SH behaviors.  I can also get lost in reading a really good book.  I basically take myself out of my own life by getting interested in the characters in a book.  Meditation has also been helpful.  And I always try to go for a walk and get some fresh air and sunshine if the weather is nice.

what coping strategies have you tried when you are having urges?

Kristy

I used to use the rubber band snap to induce some of the pain I could tolerate in order to try to mask the emotional pain that I could not handle (at the time). I've learned to use my anxiety as a motivation for my poetry, I write my best poems when I try to figure it out in rhyming ways. For instance here is the beginning sentence of a poem I call PERCEPTION

Perceiving what we believe in is deceiving and has no meaning as life's mistreating dishes out this beating leaving us bleeding.

I try to write more positive things these days but when anxiety hits I'm at it's mercy trying to occupy my brain so anxiety can't take over and win!~

I remember when I quit sh, I had drawn a heart on my wrist as a reminder to love myself and I drew another heart on my cell window and stopped punching it closed.

I have attended over 100 groups, and have had 3 therapists, two caseworkers, and currently I see two therapists. I haven't sh since 2009, I hit some really tough patches since then and held a utensil and contemplated, but now I reach out when I need to talk to somebody. I use 7Cups, the crisis phone line, friends, alcohol, marijuana in that order. I haven't drank a drop in the past 223 days, and now I only smoke my medical marijuana (I have a MMC license).

I'm on the Needs Reply team and I've found that chatting with other members and supporting them gives me a sense of purpose and direction. It helps you, when you help others because you are better at giving advice that taking advice; so if you are helping others it actually helps you hone your mental health skills and it puts better tolls in your Coping-Skill-Tool-Box :-)

When you can be honest with yourself, and learn to get out of your own way, and more importantly have a therapist that you fully trust, life can turn all the way around. The work we put in here on 7cups and the work we put into our self care makes all the difference. We are not alone here. You've all got this!!~

Blessings, Day