Before the urge hits 1. Keep a tally of when the urge hits 2. Try not to be alone 3.

Choose a day of the week not to cut on 4. Avoid temptation (razors in supermarkets, keep dangerous things inaccessible) 5. Make self-harm tools inaccessible
Wrap them in selotape o Freeze them in a block of ice 6. Make rules (e.g. will never cut in my bedroom, at work, etc) 7. Make a list of reasons why you want to stop self-harming and keep it with your tools 8. Write a list of friends who you can call if the urge hits 9. Make a list of crisis lines 10. Make a contract with someone 11. Write down things you are good at and read this if you have urges 12. Keep a compliments book; write in it when someone says something nice about you 13. Keep a calendar to keep track of days you self-harm 14. Collect something; add to your collection when youre feeling bad 15. Make a happy box. Keep things that make you happy: photos, special letters, phone numbers and a list of reasons not to self-harm 16. Make an emergency CD songs that will make you feel happy 17. Carry safe objects. E.g. stones, crystals, small books, squishy things 18. H.A.L.T o Avoid getting hungry, angry, lonely or tired 19. Work out the most difficult time of day for you and plan things to keep you distracted during that time 20. Identify risky situations and plan how to avoid them 21. Make an urge card. A card with coping strategies, positive statements, reasons not to self-harm 22. Award yourself with tokens (1 day, 1 month self-harm free)
o

Learning exercises 23. Keep a diary 24. Write a letter to your self-harm 25. Write a list of positive things in your life 26. Write two lists: 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33.
One of EVERYTHING you have EVER enjoyed o One of the things you would like to do. Write reasons why you want to stop self-harming Learn a new language Listen to a song you like and try to write down all the lyrics Talk to yourself out loud Make affirmation tapes Send yourself an encouraging email Brainstorm the choices and options you have
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34.

Write for as long as you can

Psychological 35. Write words in the sand and watch them being washed away 36. Allow yourself to cry 37. Visualise your troubles melting away 38. Word repetition. Pick a word that represents how you feel and continue to write it over
and over 39. Look at photos of happy times 40. Tell yourself rational, encouraging things. o This will pass o Everyone feels like this sometimes 41. Act like you feel good 42. Make a list of your accomplishments 43. Identify distorted thoughts and turn them into positive ones 44. Repeating positive thoughts to yourself 45. Choose a colour that makes you feel safe/calm and repeat the word over and over

Imitating self-harm 46. Snap a rubber band on your wrist 47. Draw on yourself with red pen 48. Squeeze ice cubes 49. Rub a toothbrush on your skin 50. Squeeze tissues 51. Wax your legs 52. Use a henna tattoo kit 53. Bandage the parts of your body you want to harm 54. Harm a teddy or doll 55. Paint some non-toxic glue on your body and peel it off when its dry 56. Put sellotape on the area you want to harm 57. Scribble with crayon or chalk 58. Draw a picture of yourself and draw lines where you want to harm

Delaying and distracting 59. Use the 15 minute rule. Hold off for 15 minutes and tell yourself you can harm if you still
feel like doing so. Try another 15 minutes. 60. Describe an object, including size, weight, texture, shape, colour, possible uses, feel, etc 61. Choose a random object and try to list 20 different uses for it 62. Research a random subject 63. Sleep 64. Make lists. Lots of lists. All the food you can think of; all the animals you can think of. 65. Detangle wool, cotton, necklaces etc. 66. Re-organise your room

67. 68. 69. 70. 71. 72. 73. 74. 75. 76. 77. 78. 79. 80. 81. 82. 83. 84. 85. 86. 87. 88. 89. 90.

Read a joke book or go to a joke site. Put your books and CDs in alphabetical order Rip up paper Colour in a piece of paper with a biro Pop bubble wrap Count to 100 Say the alphabet backwards Build a pillow fort Memories something Think up baby names Name your soft toys Plan your imaginary wedding Hunt for things on Ebay Look up family and friends on the internet Look at property adverts to find your dream home Make as many words as possible out of your full name Make anagrams of peoples names Count things ceiling tiles, floor tiles, patterns, bricks etc. Arrange your wardrobe Sort out old photos Plan a dinner party Play with a slinky or puppet Go out and smile at at least five people; you will end up smiling yourself! Play the A to Z game. Think of a topic and then write out things beginning with each letter of the alphabet 91. Do a puzzle, a crossword, wordsearch etc 92. Build a tower of cards 93. Search for your name on google images 94. Play solitaire 95. Plan a holiday 96. Take a few minutes to act silly 97. Spin coins and listen to the sound

Violent, anger-releasing 98. Punch a pillow 99. Scratch or jab a piece of wood with a screwdriver 100. Scream 101. Make something, then destroy it 102. Shout out your feelings 103. Scribble on a piece of paper 104. Hit a punch bag 105. Squeeze a stress ball 106. Flatten cans for recycling 107. Throw a pillow at a wall 108. Rip up an old newspaper or phonebook

109. 110. 111. 112. 113. 114. 115. 116. 117. 118. 119.

Throw ice hard enough to shatter it Break sticks Clap hard Blow up balloons then pop them Tear up old clothes Throw everything into the middle of the room (not glass though!) Smash glass into recycling bins Throw a ball Scribble all over pictures in magazines Throw raw eggs at a wall Make lots of noise with pots and pans

Exercise 120. Dance 121. Go for a walk. Pay attention to the rhythm of your steps 122. Swimming 123. Cycling 124. Sex 125. Stretching 126. Run as fast as you can up and down the stairs or from one room to another 127. Paper tennis write how youre feeling on a piece of paper then screw it up and use it as
a tennis ball 128. Put on classical music and pretend youre a conductor 129. Jump around in circles until you fall

Other physical stuff 130. Have a shower 131. Stomp around in heavy shoes 132. Break an egg 133. Take a walk in the rain and stomp in the ouddles 134. Paint your nails 135. Bite your names 136. Wash your face 137. Brush your teeth 138. Dunk your arms in icy water 139. Get a massage 140. Put on make up or face paint 141. Shave 142. Strip the bark from a thin stick or twig 143. Brush a pet 144. Comb your hair Nurturing 145. Self-massage 146. bath

147. 148. 149. 150. 151. 152. 153. 154. 155. 156. 157. 158. 159. 160.

Hot drink Curl up under a blanket Hug your pillow or a teddy Read a good book Burn incense or scented candles (unless your way of self-harming is burning) Eat your favourite food Eat ice cream Hug someone or hug yourself Chocolate Treat yourself to a present Listen to soothing music Bake Have a bath with lots of bubbles Curl up in your pyjamas

Calming and relaxing 161. Deep breathing 162. Relaxation techniques 163. Go for a walk 164. Watch a sunrise or sunset 165. Lay outside and watch the clouds 166. Look at the stars 167. Go into the garden or a wood and admire the nature 168. Try to remember happy times 169. Recite a poem, prayer or something that comforts you 170. Yoga 171. Visualise a calm, safe place 172. Watch a candle flame 173. Focus on something solid 174. Watch fish 175. Watch bees or butterflies 176. Stroke a pet 177. Watch a lava lamp Creative 178. Write a poem 179. Draw 180. Paint 181. Make a kite and see if it flies 182. Play with play dough 183. Cooking 184. Needlework 185. Make a puppet 186. Make someone a card 187. Make up a song

188. 189. 190. 191. 192. 193. 194. 195. 196. 197. 198. 199. 200. 201. 202. 203. 204. 205.

Sing Knit Finger-paint Draw on the walls Buy a colouring book Make a compilation CD of your favours songs Start collecting something Decorate a box Decorate clothing Make bracelets or necklaces Rock painting Collect wild flowers Make a paper chain Make a scrapbook Write a childrens story Make a collage Make a happy picture Redecorate your room or rearrange furniture

Grounding 206. Focus on the present 207. Be aware of the world be aware of your surroundings 208. Stroke nice fabrics 209. Take a cold bath 210. Find a pulse on your body and count the beats 211. Do a body scan: Feel each part and tense up the muscles, then move down your body
releasing them all. 212. Make a list of things you can and cant control 213. 54321: o Name 5 things you can see o 4 things you can hear o 3 things you can feel o 2 things you can smell o 1 good thing about yourself 214. Roll blu-tac in your hands 215. Touch something familiar and safe (e.g. a blanket) 216. Put your feet firmly on the ground 217. Stick your hand in icy water or poke frozen food 218. Bite into a pepper or lemon or chew an extra strong mint 219. Focus on strong smells

Other people 220. Phone a friend 221. Call your therapist 222. Play with kids they make you happy

223. 224. 225. 226. 227. 228. 229.

Ring a crisis line Visit a friend Smile at people Make your feelings known by telling someone how you feel Invite a friend round for dinner Read or watch TV with someone Go to a public place and people watch

Self-punishment/worthy stuff 230. Household chores 231. Wash and wax your car 232. Study 233. Tidy your room or desk 234. Learn a new language 235. Do something youve been putting off 236. Catch up on letter-writing and emails 237. Clean your email inbox 238. Organise your bills 239. Polish jewellery 240. Do some gardening 241. Pick up litter in the street or park 242. Find someone you can help give money to a homeless person, do something nice for
someone 243. Do voluntary work 244. Sort through old junk 245. Take unwanted things to a charity shop

Other things 246. Shopping 247. Sing along to the CD or radio 248. Watch a happy movie 249. Play a computer game 250. Go to the cinema 251. Surf the net 252. Play with a pet 253. Go for a walk 254. Read a book 255. Make a website 256. Go for a drive 257. Take up a new hobby 258. Go to a museum or gallery 259. Read the bible of Shakespeare or something you wouldnt usually read 260. Feed ducks 261. Go to the library 262. Find a sandbox and make a sandcastle

263. 264. 265. 266.

Go clubbing Play at a swing park Go to a zoo; name the animals Put dots all over a piece of paper