Cutting Yourself?

Yeah when I used to cut myself it was because I was in intense emotional pain and mentally unstable. It is in no way a cool or acceptable thing to do IMHO.

 

My scars from SI have long since faded, but now I have a job in which I tend to get long straight burns on my arms (I cook and never learn my lesson about reaching into a hot fry basket), and I'm mortified for people to see the marks those burns leave because I don't want people to think I'm cutting or self-injuring. I never wanted people to know, I wore long sleeves even on hot days when I did it, the only people who ever saw were the handful of friends I confided in and eventually the school counselor and my dad. The last time I ever cut was February 4, 2005. I stayed up all night in a horrible mental state, my boyfriend had just dumped me and the day before we had buried my beloved grandpa. My dad saw my arms when I went to the kitchen for breakfast and he cried. I had never seen him cry before, and here he was, tears streaming, because of something I did. Something I did to myself. Something I never meant for him to know about. It was then I realized that I wasn't hurting just myself. I never did it again, and have made a promise to the people I love the most I won't do it again. When you hurt yourself, you are not the only victim.

 

I cut i have been since i was 13 am now 34 ...i have tried to stop before but only got to 7 months without
i dont see anything wrong with it its just a way to cope

 

:icon_bs: If there's nothing wrong with it then why did you try and stop?

 

I think it is harmful, it starts off as tiny scratches and a couple months later you are covered in major scars that will probably never go away. Cutting can sometimes lead to slitting your wrist and dying. So yeah, it is harmful. But if you are careful and smart about it then I think it is a good coping mechanism, although I do not reccomend it at all. Weed works just as well. I wish I never started, because it really is addictive and is really hard to stop, especially when you just keep getting more stressed.

 

Yeah cutting yourself is really wrong its not an ok way to cope. I dont get why anybody would want to cut themselves ever!

 

I've been cutting myself on and off since my mid teens. And it's definitely not for attention, seeing as I have nobody in my life to care about or notice what I'm doing. All the other pain in my life I have no control over, and have no power to stop. Causing physical pain to myself is something I can control, and I think that's probably why I do it. I do cut myself far less now than I used to, but I still find myself doing it when the stress and depression starts getting too much.

It is not healthy, I know. And it's very easy for others to criticise, but when you're severely depressed, and emotionally/mentally unstable, you are likely to do things that you wouldn't do if your state of mind was normal. I think in recent times, self harm has been glamorised, and been made to look somehow "cool". And as a result, people with severe issues who self harm are being stigmatized, and being made out to be "attention seekers", which for people with genuine chronic depression couldnt be further from the truth.

 

Cutting yourself only fucks you up more physically. Try some drugs and alcohol they work wonders with no visual side effects, might fuck your liver up tho, but i hate my liver.

 

It's extremely unhealthy and dangerous. When your cut up tummy is full of MRSA, you'll see the light.

 

My physical form was already ugly and deformed before I started cutting... I had no looks to lose, so "visual side effects" weren't really a concern for me....

 

If you don't see the problem that inflicting pain and causing injury for no reason you are an idiot

 

It's a coping skill, and a bad one at that. You compare it to jogging, yes jogging is a coping skill as well and it's obviously better for your body but there are those who take it too far and run 20 miles a day and eat nothing. Boom anorexia.

Cutting is addictive. I did it for 10 years. It makes me sick to think that for a whole decade I would just gash myself open, sometimes without even thinking because I was deep in my addiction. It's been a year since I last did it and it's been hard training my mind to not go in that direction. Sometimes something will happen and I'll immediately have the urge but.... I'd rather not have to see even more scars.

It's unhealthy. You think someone who's terribly sad, mad, whatever, is going to take the time to sterilize everything and try to prevent infection? Some do, but others don't. And it's mentally unhealthy as well, because they are most likely isolating themselves to do it, closing others out at a time when they need comfort or a listening ear the most.

There's a stigma to it. You've either been there or you haven't. You get it or you don't.

 

OP, Depends why it's being done.

If someone is cutting themselves as a means of making the endorphins flood their system to drown out emotional pain then yes there is an issue that should be addressed,

I used to carve ALOT of shit into my arm up till my mid 20's, but it was done in the same spirit as is held by those getting piercings ant tattoos, the only difference being was I could change my statements as soon as the old ones healed up AND I saved a ton of money on stuff I would otherwise be looking back upon now with regret had I used ink to express my thoughts and feelings..

 

I recently was in the mental hospital, I had no long sleeve shirt ton cover my scars. So for 4 days I had to look at my arms and am ashamed at the damage I have caused, I will never were short sleeves again.

With all that said I still have the urge to cut.

 

There are times when it is moreover not so the cutting; and indeed spilling, it is the sensation of feeling which is more 'to the point' (no pun intended)
The numbness felt is not just skin deep, it is the experience of feeling empty that demands a satisfaction
It does not neccessarily indicate a public cry for help though can be more of a personal craving, and one which can never see fulfillment - I guess unless you have been there - "in the shoes of the barefoot" then an outside view is less objective

 

If you expect to stop having the urge to cut, you're in for a big surprise. I haven't done it in 7 years and I still get it sometimes. But as the years go by, it does get easier to resist the urge. But after 7 years and still getting those twinges every blue moon, I doubt they'll ever completely be gone. It's an addiction, and while I didn't fall too hard into it and was able to pull myself out before it got out of control bad, I once got it in my mind that it was okay to self-injure, and now, that voice is always there.

 

People self-injure constantly, some just use other forms, and as I point out, it's a form of expression.

Do you think the Tribes which engage in ritualistic scarification or mutilation find themselves to be disgusting? I think not. I love mine, they are a part of who I am and I have never known shame.

If you do, get the fuck over the fucking pinstripe narrow notions you've been brainwashed with by western culture and open your eyes to the world for what it is, not what your preconceptions about it, fuelled by peers and parents tell you to expect from the experience, savor what is.

 

I have struggled with cutting for years. I don't do it to kill myself, I'm very happy with my life. The endorphins released from the small cut or pin needle stick calms my mind for a few seconds. I have ADHD and Bipolar I Rapid Cycling. When I can't get my mind to shut up for a few seconds I will nic my upper thigh. I don't talk about it usually, most people don't know that I do it. My boyfriend knows that I do, and my therapist. I am very careful and try my absolute hardest not to do it often. I've done it twice in the last 2 weeks but before that it had been at least 2 months (that's wonderful for me). I don't reccomend it to anyone it is highly 'addictive' for lack of a better word. The urge is so strong that I can't even describe it. I'm not proud that I do this to myself, to tell you the truth it's pretty embarrassing and I hide it to the best of my ability. It is a problem that I struggle with and have for so many years.

And I do worry that my child will see my scars but I'm sure by the time he or she is old enough to know what the scars are they will already know that their mother is a crazy person and that it's not a normal thing.

 

I used to smoke crack and the people sharing their experience with cravings about cutting are making it seem like that activity is more addictive than what I used to do.

I've been clean from all substances for 3 1/2 years.

I lost any cravings/desire about such bullshittery after the first day of this 3 1/2 year stretch. I was beaten. I still am beaten, I respect and accept that when I put any substance into my body I cannot stop.

 

Cutting makes you release endorphines, which are natural painkillers. I think there are better ways to get high / forget about problems than this.