08/03/2026
March is Self-Harm Awareness Month
Self-harm is not attention seeking.
It’s not a failure of willpower.
It’s a coping strategy.
It is often a nervous system trying to regulate something that feels unbearable.
For some people, having alternatives can help when the urge spikes, not as a “fix”, and not as a demand to stop, but as additional options in moments of overwhelm.
When the urge feels intense, some people find these options helpful:
• Press something cold against your skin (ice cubes, cold packs)
• Draw on your skin with a marker instead of injuring
• Splash cold water on your face or neck
• Write about what the urge is trying to say
• Use strong sensory input (music, movement, a shower)
• Hold or squeeze something firm
• Place a bandage on the area you want to hurt
• Cry, if that’s what your body needs
• Create something (paint, draw, colour)
• Reach out to someone safe
These won’t work for everyone.
And if they don’t work for you, that doesn’t mean you’ve failed.
Awareness means reducing shame.
It means responding with curiosity instead of control.
It means building safety around people, not policing their coping.
Self-Harm Awareness Month from Rae Sabine
Email: creatingwellbeingmelbourne@gmail.com
