Believe it or not, you’re already taking a step toward that.

The mere act of acknowledging that you WANT help is a huge deal, though it may not seem like one right now. The process of recovery can’t start if you are unwilling to start it.

By merely sending this message, you are showing a willingness to recover.

Self-injury, unfortunately, is something that has been degraded in value by society to the point where it is trivialized and people do not see it as a legitimate struggle.

However, those who have dealt with it and understand the nature of it (it’s ultimately an addiction) will always tell you: the recovery process is not an overnight one. And it’s just as legitimate of a struggle as anyone else’s; so, do not let the societal downgrading of the problem fool you: It’s going to be a battle, and it may even take years, but you have something very significant here: A willingness to stop.

Self-injury is a type of coping strategy. One way to battle it is to eliminate excuses to not use a more healthy alternative to cope.

Right now: Take everything you use to hurt yourself and dispose of it somehow. Find a friend you trust and tell them what is going on. Promise them that if you feel the urge to harm yourself, you will call them instead.

Create something for yourself—something both physical and symbolic that reminds you you have other resources and you don’t have to turn to self-injury.

One method that I think can be very useful is finding a sort of craft box and burying the things you use to harm yourself in it (if you can’t throw them away completely. I know it’s easy to dig up new things when you’re desperate).

Decorate that box with things that remind you that there are other options or other ways to cope. Your favorite song lyrics, pictures of things you like, pictures of your friends or family.

Inside the box, place other tools you can use to cope: perhaps paper and a pen to write, the phone numbers of friends, paint and paintbrushes, sketch paper, your favorite CDs, markers to draw on your skin instead of hurt it— anything you can use or have used to cope that is more healthy. Bury what hurts you far below many, many options. Make it an absolute last resort.

By the time you get past the other things, you may feel more calm, and —hey— if you’re using paint or pen to cope, some awesome creative work could  come out of it. Instead of scars, which in the long-run only hurt you more.

Ultimately, harming yourself may lead to temporary relief, but you will feel bad about it later. It solves things for those few seconds’ rush, but does it really solve anything? Not at all. It damages and embeds itself into you more and more the more you do it.

However, as I said, you have taken the first step toward recovering by being willing to recover, and that’s a huge deal.

You may stumble along the way, and it will be hard, but don’t let that get to you—if you’re strong enough to start fight it, you’re strong enough to make it through.

Best wishes. I hope things start to look up for you.