Challenge Stigma

As I mentioned in my previous post, my main goal with this blog is to raise awareness of mental health, what it is and how it affects people, an idea which was heavily influenced by my own sufferings but more recently by two campaigns of mental health charities which aim to raise awareness and tackle stigma. A topic which is very important to me personally is self harm. As somebody who has dealt with issues of self harming behaviour since the young age of just 13, I am angered and frustrated by the attitudes towards the topic. Many people choose to ignore it; pretend it's not happening to their son, daughter, best friend. Those who do talk about it often portray it in such a negative light that those suffering find it impossible to reach out for help they desperately need. My family weren't aware until 3 months after I turned 15.
It seems to me the general population are afraid of the subject. As humans, we fear what is different and foreign, yet in this case we don't seem to stop and think about the sufferer. If you hear about your friend who is cutting, burning or partaking in other such behaviour, and you are afraid and thus create a distance between yourselves, or you become angry and you tease them for it, think about how the sufferer must be feeling. Just because they are doing it themselves it does not mean they are in control of it. True, many people who begin to self harm do so as a way to control an aspect of their life as other aspects have become hopelessly out of control, however the behaviour soon becomes uncontrollable, it becomes a habit, an addiction, a means to survive. If somebody is reaching out to you and you then distance yourself, that person is going to feel lonely and abandoned, which will then serve as yet more reasons to harm themselves.
People who self harm are not weird. They are not freaks, and they are certainly no less of a person than those who do not injure themselves. Those who self harm need help. It is often said that people do it for attention, and it is true in some respects. People who self harm for attention also need help. For others, they self harm as a cry for help, a way to express what they are feeling on the inside on the outside, visible, as proof of their sufferings. It baffles me how many people still hold such negative views on this topic.
If you ever see anybody with scars on the wrists or other parts of their body, don't alienate them. These people need love, care and help, all of which everybody is capable of offering.
It's not difficult to say "hey, it's ok. Do you need to talk about it".
If you are a sufferer, there are many places you can get help. Most schools have a designated member of staff (in my case, going to this member of staff was the best decision I ever made in regards to my mental health) to help, a family member, friend or your doctor. If you are under 16 I can't vouch that your confidentiality will not be broken, however it is important that you make aware as many people as possible in order that you have the right help and support to improve your life.
I will always say that speaking about the way I was feeling, although I didn't do this until the start of my final year of school, was the key step to make. Everything after that initial conversation is easy in comparison. Find somebody you can trust and tell them how you are feeling. If somebody opens up to you about how they are feeling, be sensitive and understanding. Even if you don't understand, listen carefully and always encourage them to seek the help of a professional.