Imagine this: You are alone at night, all by yourself in your room. You feel sad, anxious, trapped, and most importantly numb. You feel everything, yet nothing at all. You only have one option left, it is staring straight at you. You know exactly where it is and what you have to do. The sharp metal blade is now your “friend”. You slowly but surely pierce your skin. Cut after cut, first on your left, then on your right. Lines after lines, the blood rising upon your tainted skin. You can not feel the pain of the cuts, but soon enough you will feel the agony. Now all your detrimental thoughts have vanished. You get addicted, it has become your safety option. Ironic right? One night, you cut too deep. You hit a vein and now you are bleeding out. The blood streaming down your skin. You worry for your life. You have no clue what to do. You lie unconscious, a bloody mess, barely alive. You lie downfounded in the morning. You awaken to nothing but a bloody mess. You look at your arms, it is full of scars. You now conceal your scars just like your emotions. You feel ashamed, guilty, and drained. Do you really want scars? Do you really want to ever experience this? Do you really want to risk your life? Do you really want a constant reminder of what you have done? What would you do if you cut too deep? Was self-harm really the answer? This is how self-harm eats away at you until you have nothing left. Do you want this to happen to you? If so, there is a way to cope with self-harm urges. I strongly believe that the best way to stop your urges is to find a new type of way to release your emotions.

One reason I think finding a new way to release your emotions is the best way to stop self-harming urges because it allows you to get the same relief without the pain of inflicting harm on yourself. First of all, what is self-harm? Is it just cutting? The answer is no. Self-harm can be cuts or burns in the arms, legs, abdomens or any form of hurting yourself (“American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy”, 2002-2016). This means that self-harm is not just cutting, it is everything you do to hurt yourself. Second of all, fake smiles and pretending to be happy will not help you at all. Trust me, pretending will not do anything to fix your issues, it will only worsen the emotions you are hiding. You do not want that. My research about self-harm states, “Psychologists have found that self-harm can rapidly get rid of tension and other bad feelings.” This means that self-harm does release emotions, but there is a downside. Self-harm is only a quick fix, it can last into adulthood, and learning less harmful more effective ways will help you in the long run (“WebMD-Teen Health”, 2005-2016). Consider this, you could bleed out and die. Self-harm affects teens by worsening your self-image, social isolation, feelings of disgust, guilt, shame, and losing important relationships with people (“Village Behavioral Health”, 2016). Think about it, is hurting yourself really worth it? There are so many more options like running, cleaning, writing, drawing, and really anything that is cathartic for you. By finding another way, you let your deep emotions out without having to physically harm your well being. I mean, really pay attention, you are already emotionally injured, do you have to be physically harmed as well? Finding a new way does release your emotions without pain, but it also prevents unwanted suicide attempts.

Another reason finding a new method of release is the best way to cope with self-harm urges is because it prevents accidental death. You see, self-harm is rarely suicidal, it is just a fast relief from emotional distress (“American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy”, 2002-2016). Listen to me carefully, just because you cut yourself does not mean it is your time to die. Self-harm and having suicidal thoughts are different, but connected. Factual evidence on teens who self-harm show that 70% of teens who have self-harmed has had one suicide attempt (“Teen Help”, 2016). This shows to prove that many teenagers could have died that one time and that is exactly why you need to find a new way to release your emotions. Based on a poll I created, out of 22 teens, 15 have committed some form of self-harm. Again, 15 teenagers from my class could have died. We need to stop this, we are the future of the world, we need a new way to release our emotions. We deserve it! Hear me out, finding a new way to let go will take time, but it is definitely worth the wait. Do you not care about your well being? Do you want to ever be happy? Do you want the chance to give yourself a better life? Save yourself from the dangers, find a new way to release your emotions, and keep fighting. It is not your time to die, so please do not end it too soon. Finding a new way to release your emotions does prevent accidental death, others might say you can just stop.

People who have never experienced hurting themselves might say that it is easy to stop, that all you have to do is not do it. There is a piece of research that suggests if you cut less intensely you will eventually just stop the drive to hurt yourself (“Students Against Depression”). I understand your thinking, but you are completely wrong. Self-harm is addictive just like alcohol or drugs. You can not just stop, it becomes temptation (“Mental Health America”, 2016). Take the case that your emotions are too overwhelming, then this whole cutting less intense will not work. I can assure you this so called solution of just simply stopping is not healthy. It will eventually lead to even more intense harm than before. With finding a new way, you enable yourself for a better tomorrow. You save yourself from scars, scars that people will judge. Above all, you save yourself from dying too early. You do what is better for yourself. As much as teens who self-harm want to stop, they can not. Since we can not just stop, we can try our hardest to find a new way to let our emotions go. You can put all your emotions into something good. You can create a masterpiece, a new song, you can exercise, or do anything that will let you release your darkest feelings. Let some good come out of the bad emotions that cloud your everyday. You already feel so much pain, why give yourself more? You have so much more to offer, stop yourself from self inflicted harm, and find the best way for you to set yourself free. Self-harm can not just be stopped in a snap, but it can surely be prevented by finding a new coping strategy. 

In conclusion, finding a new way to release your built-up emotions is the best way to cope with self-harm urges. With finding a new method to set your emotions free, you get the same relief without the pain of your own doing. You carry all this negativity, why add to it? In addition, you prevent accidental death. You give yourself a better chance to live and be at a happier, more stable emotional place. The others say to just stop what you are doing to yourself, but trust me it is way more difficult to deal with. The best way is to find a new path of action. You must rise from the ashes of negativity, let your demons go, and unleash the best you. Do me a favor, keep living, keep striving. Live for the future, you are worth so much more than you think.