What are some alternatives to self-harm?

Writing positive words on your skin, drinking warm flavorful liquids like tea or coffees, drinking cool flavorful liquids, popping balloons, playing with clay or playdough, listening to good music, dancing around your house, buying plates on ebay/at garage sales and breaking them, silly string fights, popping bubble wrap, tearing up paper, writing

If you're feeling angry, do something very physical and violent that's not directed at a living thing. Ex, hit a punching bag, sketch a photo of yourself and mark what you wanna do then rip it, break sticks, throw ice at a brick, etc. If you're feeling sad, or depressed, do something slow and soothing. Ex, taking a hot bath If you're feeling numb, or just want to feel a sensation from self harm, do something that creates a physical sensation that doesn't harm you! Ex, bite into a hot pepper, slap your wrist with a rubber band, etc. I'd also recommend taking a look at the self help guide on self harm that 7 cups provides, it might help! https://www.7cups.com/self-harm/

Doing something else with your hands, like playing with silly putty or a tangle...there are lots of great options. Exercise will give you that adrenaline rush you are looking for that is released with pain. Other ways to get that adrenaline rush are horror movies, amusement parks, etc.

You could draw on your arms, legs, stomach or any other place that you would self harm. Maybe draw an animal, a good one can be a butterfly. Then when you think about self harming, you could look at that picture, if you harm yourself, you are harming the thing portrayed in the image, if you purposely wash off the image you are also harming it. If the image washes off naturally for example in showers or baths, you have succeeded. Continue using this method until you no longer have the desire to harm yourself.

The best way to avoid self-harm is to replace it with a healthy habit. These can include arts and crafts, physical activity, or spending time with friends.

You can draw on yourself with a red pen to simulate blood, snap rubber bands, rub an ice cube where you want to harm, rip up paper, punch a punching bag, watch a really good movie, talk to someone you love, eat an ice cream sundae, the possibilities are endless.

Snapping a rubber band around your list. Drawing a butterfly and if you self harm before the butterfly is washed away it dies.

Get an ice cube and run it over the place you're wanting to cut. It will give you the feeling of coolness and pain without really hurting you. You can also get a soft tip pen and draw on the place you want to cut. Scribble on it until the feeling subsides.

The one I love, which is often advised by psychiatrists, is called the Butterfly Project. Originally, this meant that if you ever wanted to harm yourself then instead you just drew a butterfly in the spot you wanted to hurt (NOT in a biro or similar pen - they can hurt!) But its grown and expanded and now the advice is to draw on yourself - draw anything you want - wherever you want to harm. This can be as big as you want, so if you want to doodle over your entire stomach then do it! A lot of people like to leave all the ink on as a reminder not to do it, but if you want to hide it then you can just wash it off later.

Well, you can always do things that make you feel better. For instance, working out brings up your levels of serotonin, which inevitably brings you to a better mood. I think it is still important to find out what is causing you to self-harm in the first place and tackling that problem head on. That way, the problem disappears altogether!

Journaling, Exercise, reading, any activities that make you feel happy about yourself. Everyone is different. Find as many alternatives as you can.

A good place to start is journalism, writing down how you feel and what happened. If you feel like you cant control the urge, grab a marker to replace the object of harm. A hard workout can help, you still might feel pain, but this time it will be for the best.

When I engaged in self-harm, it was an effort to change the way I felt. And of course there are much healthier ways to do this! I could do some challenging exercises, escape into the world of a great book or show, talk to another person, or get out of my own head by helping someone else.

Holding an ice cube on your skin, wearing an elastic band around your wrist and ping it at your wrist, taking either a hot shower or a cold bath, chewing on a piece of chilli/ginger root. That's all I could think of for now but I hope it's of some help!

Drawing on your skin, screaming in a pillow, crying, singing, writing, talking ... Keep your mind busy. Try, you'll be surprised.

listening to music will help you trough a lot of things you just have to find the right music for your self

I used to self-harm to feel like I was in control of my life and as a way to express all the emotions I was feeling. The best alternative is to go to a therapist in order to express everything you are feeling in a different way. I also found that putting my energy into my hobbies and exercising made me feel better.

There are lots of alternatives that you can try. The first step is to figure out what part of self harm helps you, then you can find alternatives for that. For example, if seeing blood helps you, you can try warming up some red food colouring and using that on your skin. If it is the pain then you can replace that with sensation, such as biting into a lemon or holding an ice cube. If it is a distraction then there a lots of things you can try instead, such as expressing your feelings creatively. The best known alternative is snapping a rubber band, I'd say to use this as a last resort only to ween yourself away from breaking skin, because you are still using pain to deal with your problems and it can leave bruises.

I use to wear a rubber band or two around my wrists and pull it back whenever I felt urged. I then realized it was only satisfying to me because I was still hurting myself. I now prefer writing stories to distract myself or even doodling and sketching animals and landscapes. It's not much, but I'm easily amused.

Understanding self harm is the key to overcoming it, firstly understand why you harm :either in a response to pain(harming when youre upset or stressed to deal with hurt) or to numbness(harming when you feel numb in order to feel something.) If you harm in response to pain alternatives will be different than to numbness. Alternatives (pain) : -physical distraction; distance yourself, go for a walk, go outside, visit a friend -mental distraction: do some coping exercises (focus on 5 things and describe them), read a book, read an article etc. -distance :move the weapon away from you so its less tempting, leave the area etc. -physical:dance around, exercise, practice breathing Alternatives(numbness) : -recreate pain :flick a band in the area, use ice on area, dip limb in cold water -sight:use a marker or pen and create marks, paint can work if you like the sight of blood -ignite emotions :watch something really sad or really happy etc. Alternatives(general) : -talk to friends -reach out on 7cups! -talk in a group chat -move around -stay in company(this saved me a few times personally) Hope this helps 😊

If you want to harm youself, please consider calling the following numbers: Call someone - 1-800-273-TALK: This is a 24-hour crisis hotline if you're about to self-harm or are in an emergency situation. 1-800-334-HELP: This number is the Self Injury Foundation's 24-hour national crisis line. 1-800-DON'T-CUT: This number provides information about self-harm. Self harm alternatives: Draw - Draw on your body with a marker. If you find your thoughts continually drifting back to harming yourself, one alternative is to draw on your body with a marker. Draw on the place where you are thinking of harming yourself. Ink won't leave a scar. Sleep it off - when you feel like self harming at night, go to bed early. Remove tools - flush it down the toilet, throw it in the trash or remove it from your reach. Use a pin - this is your absolute LAST resort, a pin doesn't cause as much damage and is scarier to use so it should deter you. Use a rubber band - this can hurt a lot more than cutting but leaves no damage - use this if desperate. Ice - this can hurt a lot more than cutting but leaves no damage - use this if desperate. Butterfly Project - draw a butterfly on the area you self harm - if you self harm, you've killed the butterfly, if you don't you let it live. Label it with the name of someone you care about. Nails - dig your nails into your skin or scratch.

Drawing/sketching, painting , Puzzles , speaking to someone , Sports/fitness , reading , Elastic band on the wrist it doesn't cut its just like a pinch

Some of my personal favorite alternatives are: Throwing ice in a bathtub Scribbling on a piece of paper, cutting it into squares, and putting it back together in a different order Drawing yourself a badge, commemorating how long it has been since you last hurt yourself Singing pop songs as if they were heavy metal Spend time with an animal Stomp in leaf piles, puddles, or just jump up and down outside

Holding and ice cube in a closed hand. Putting glue on your hands and peeling it off after it's dried. Counting to 100. Eating fruits. Knitting, sewing, crotchet. Cleaning, sports, anything, absolutely anything you can do with your hands.

Holding ice, red marker, scribbling, fidgets, snapping a rubber band on your wrist, all can be alternatives

It's different for everyone. Some people find hands in things such as drawing or playing and instrument beneficial. Others may enjoy exercising or maybe singing. It is also beneficial for the person to reach out to their friends, maybe speak to them about how you're feeling or hang out with them to get out of your own head.

Some alternatives to self harm are going for a run, exercising in general, talking to friends, drawing/painting, watching movies or television, playing a game, or doing something you love. Just always remember there is always someone there to talk to.🖤

Working out, using a journal to write out your thought/feelings, talking to someone, hobbies... etc

I think painting on your arms instead of cutting really helps. It also helps to draw red linies with a marker on your arm.

I usually either call someone, if i can't call someone painting my arm instead of cutting helps. Also, some people instead of cutting use rubber bands - it hurts a little but doesn't make permanent damage.