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It's been suggested that we leave a space between the start of a post and the triggering part.
Write something innocuous in the first line. then leave some spaces between in and the subject matter. this should take care of accidentally triggering someone.
How and Why to Report a Post
Write something innocuous in the first line. then leave some spaces between in and the subject matter. this should take care of accidentally triggering someone.
How and Why to Report a Post
For when you can't find the words
Headline posted:
Inspired by replying to another post... I thought something like this might be useful for those of us who have taken to injuring ourselves in order to cry out for help because the words won't come. When you don't have the words, come here and choose one or two or however many you need. Maybe even point to the words on the screen, or write them out, if you can't verbalize them. Feel free to add to the list...
Are you in crisis?
"I'm feeling like hurting myself/am going to hurt myself/have already hurt myself."
"I'm thinking of killing myself/planning to kill myself/have already set my plan to kill myself in motion."
"I need to talk to my therapist/doctor/crisis line, please help me call/sit with me while I call/let me be alone while I talk to them."
"I need to go to the hospital, please take me there/sit with me while I call 911/dial 911 for me."
How are you feeling (emotionally); what's triggering you?
"I'm feeling...
...sad, depressed."
...angry, irritated, enraged."
...anxious, afraid, nervous, worried."
...lonely, ignored, invisible."
...exposed, violated."
...overwhelmed, stressed out, spent."
...confused, lost, disoriented."
"I'm happy, excited, content, and that scares me."
"I'm not sure how I'm feeling, I just know I'm not feeling GOOD."
"I'm going through a bad situation at work/school/home."
"I'm being abused, harassed, mistreated, bullied."
"I'm having a hard time with my partner/child/ex."
"This is an anniversary date/close to an anniversary date."
"I'm grieving someone I lost/something that was taken from me."
"I'm having flashbacks, I'm having bad memories, I had a nightmare."
"I don't feel grounded, I'm not sure what's real, I'm dissociating."
"I want to cry/scream/run away/break something."
How are you feeling (physically)?
"I'm very tired/in slow motion (or, very hyper/manic)."
"I'm not sleeping right."
"I'm hungry all the time/not hungry at all."
"I'm having a panic attack."
"I'm shaky, sweaty, light-headed, nauseous... (other specific symptoms)"
"I'm in pain all over."
"My (part) hurts."
"I'm having a migraine/aura/seizure."
"I'm not sure what's going on, I've never felt this way before."
"I've hurt myself and my wounds need medical attention."
"I think I may be in real trouble here, call 911 for me."
What emotional comfort do you need?
"Please just listen/just sit with me quietly."
"I need to know you see/hear me."
"I need a hug."
(to a partner) "I need you to hold me/touch me."
"I need advice on how to cope with this."
"Please distract me."
"I need you to tell me it's OK to feel how I'm feeling, that it doesn't make me a bad person."
"I need to know it's OK that I don't want to talk about it right now."
"I need to hear that you care about me/love me/want me around."
"Please don't touch me, I don't feel safe being touched right now."
"I need to be alone."
What practical help do you need?
"I need to find financial help/medical care/legal advice/other professional assistance."
"I need child care/pet care/house sitting while I am in the hospital."
"I need help cleaning/cooking/running errands."
"I need help finding work/a reference for a job application."
"I need a babysitter so I can get away for a few hours."
"I need a ride to the doctor/therapist/hospital; I need someone to be with me at the doctor."
Are you in crisis?
"I'm feeling like hurting myself/am going to hurt myself/have already hurt myself."
"I'm thinking of killing myself/planning to kill myself/have already set my plan to kill myself in motion."
"I need to talk to my therapist/doctor/crisis line, please help me call/sit with me while I call/let me be alone while I talk to them."
"I need to go to the hospital, please take me there/sit with me while I call 911/dial 911 for me."
How are you feeling (emotionally); what's triggering you?
"I'm feeling...
...sad, depressed."
...angry, irritated, enraged."
...anxious, afraid, nervous, worried."
...lonely, ignored, invisible."
...exposed, violated."
...overwhelmed, stressed out, spent."
...confused, lost, disoriented."
"I'm happy, excited, content, and that scares me."
"I'm not sure how I'm feeling, I just know I'm not feeling GOOD."
"I'm going through a bad situation at work/school/home."
"I'm being abused, harassed, mistreated, bullied."
"I'm having a hard time with my partner/child/ex."
"This is an anniversary date/close to an anniversary date."
"I'm grieving someone I lost/something that was taken from me."
"I'm having flashbacks, I'm having bad memories, I had a nightmare."
"I don't feel grounded, I'm not sure what's real, I'm dissociating."
"I want to cry/scream/run away/break something."
How are you feeling (physically)?
"I'm very tired/in slow motion (or, very hyper/manic)."
"I'm not sleeping right."
"I'm hungry all the time/not hungry at all."
"I'm having a panic attack."
"I'm shaky, sweaty, light-headed, nauseous... (other specific symptoms)"
"I'm in pain all over."
"My (part) hurts."
"I'm having a migraine/aura/seizure."
"I'm not sure what's going on, I've never felt this way before."
"I've hurt myself and my wounds need medical attention."
"I think I may be in real trouble here, call 911 for me."
What emotional comfort do you need?
"Please just listen/just sit with me quietly."
"I need to know you see/hear me."
"I need a hug."
(to a partner) "I need you to hold me/touch me."
"I need advice on how to cope with this."
"Please distract me."
"I need you to tell me it's OK to feel how I'm feeling, that it doesn't make me a bad person."
"I need to know it's OK that I don't want to talk about it right now."
"I need to hear that you care about me/love me/want me around."
"Please don't touch me, I don't feel safe being touched right now."
"I need to be alone."
What practical help do you need?
"I need to find financial help/medical care/legal advice/other professional assistance."
"I need child care/pet care/house sitting while I am in the hospital."
"I need help cleaning/cooking/running errands."
"I need help finding work/a reference for a job application."
"I need a babysitter so I can get away for a few hours."
"I need a ride to the doctor/therapist/hospital; I need someone to be with me at the doctor."
Do you know, in 900 years of time and space, I've never met anyone who wasn't important before. -- The Doctor (as written by Steven Moffat)
Was this Helpful?
33 of 35 found this helpful
5 Replies |Report This| Share this:For when you can't find the wordsInspired by replying to another post... I thought something like this might be useful for those of us who have taken to injuring ourselves in order to cry out for help because the words won't come. When you don't have the words, come here and choose one or two or however many you need. Maybe even point to the words on the screen, or write them out, if you can't verbalize them. Feel free to add to the list...<br /> <br /><b>Are you in crisis?</b><br /> <br />"I'm feeling like hurting myself/am going to hurt myself/have already hurt myself."<br /> <br />"I'm thinking of killing myself/planning to kill myself/have already set my plan to kill myself in motion."<br /> <br />"I need to talk to my therapist/doctor/crisis line, please help me call/sit with me while I call/let me be alone while I talk to them."<br /> <br />"I need to go to the hospital, please take me there/sit with me while I call 911/dial 911 for me."<br /> <br /><b>How are you feeling (emotionally); what's triggering you?</b><br /> <br />"I'm feeling...<br /> <br />...sad, depressed."<br /> <br />...angry, irritated, enraged."<br /> <br />...anxious, afraid, nervous, worried."<br /> <br />...lonely, ignored, invisible."<br /> <br />...exposed, violated."<br /> <br />...overwhelmed, stressed out, spent."<br /> <br />...confused, lost, disoriented."<br /> <br />"I'm happy, excited, content, and that scares me."<br /> <br />"I'm not sure how I'm feeling, I just know I'm not feeling GOOD."<br /> <br />"I'm going through a bad situation at work/school/home."<br /> <br />"I'm being abused, harassed, mistreated, bullied."<br /> <br />"I'm having a hard time with my partner/child/ex."<br /> <br />"This is an anniversary date/close to an anniversary date."<br /> <br />"I'm grieving someone I lost/something that was taken from me."<br /> <br />"I'm having flashbacks, I'm having bad memories, I had a nightmare."<br /> <br />"I don't feel grounded, I'm not sure what's real, I'm dissociating."<br /> <br />"I want to cry/scream/run away/break something."<br /> <br /><b>How are you feeling (physically)?</b><br /> <br />"I'm very tired/in slow motion (or, very hyper/manic)."<br /> <br />"I'm not sleeping right."<br /> <br />"I'm hungry all the time/not hungry at all."<br /> <br />"I'm having a panic attack."<br /> <br />"I'm shaky, sweaty, light-headed, nauseous... (other specific symptoms)"<br /> <br />"I'm in pain all over."<br /> <br />"My (part) hurts."<br /> <br />"I'm having a migraine/aura/seizure."<br /> <br />"I'm not sure what's going on, I've never felt this way before."<br /> <br />"I've hurt myself and my wounds need medical attention."<br /> <br />"I think I may be in real trouble here, call 911 for me."<br /> <br /><b>What emotional comfort do you need?</b><br /> <br />"Please just listen/just sit with me quietly."<br /> <br />"I need to know you see/hear me."<br /> <br />"I need a hug."<br /> <br />(to a partner) "I need you to hold me/touch me."<br /> <br />"I need advice on how to cope with this."<br /> <br />"Please distract me."<br /> <br />"I need you to tell me it's OK to feel how I'm feeling, that it doesn't make me a bad person."<br /> <br />"I need to know it's OK that I don't want to talk about it right now."<br /> <br />"I need to hear that you care about me/love me/want me around."<br /> <br />"Please don't touch me, I don't feel safe being touched right now."<br /> <br />"I need to be alone."<br /> <br /><b>What practical help do you need?</b><br /> <br />"I need to find financial help/medical care/legal advice/other professional assistance."<br /> <br />"I need child care/pet care/house sitting while I am in the hospital."<br /> <br />"I need help cleaning/cooking/running errands."<br /> <br />"I need help finding work/a reference for a job application."<br /> <br />"I need a babysitter so I can get away for a few hours."<br /> <br />"I need a ride to the doctor/therapist/hospital; I need someone to be with me at the doctor."
Catmagic responded:
One thing I did was make a "users manual" for me. It could be handed to whomever was there to deal with me an it contained useful info that can be hard to vocalize during crisis times.
It had my contact info, my name, my diagnosis, all my T's names #.
I listed healthy coping skills that the response team could use to help coach me back into control.
ex: "Please tell me to "make it snow for Ste" - (its a hypnotherapy self calming technique)
and
"Please argue with me, it will make me cry, and the anger will turn to depression and I can handle myself from there."
It also contained relavant info like:
please do NOT touch me, I will take any form of physical contact as a threat and will respond as such.
Please do not contact my family, call my T's listed above.
Having my needs and wishes clearly written out when I was in full control, is much easier then trying to think of them while in full blown crisis mode.
I kept a copy of my user manual in my car, my work locker, my house. And my T had a copy as well so he could coach the ER staff over the phone.
BTW Newsie - excellent post!! 46 thumbs up! (all of me gets to vote right?)
Peace be the journey
Paja
It had my contact info, my name, my diagnosis, all my T's names #.
I listed healthy coping skills that the response team could use to help coach me back into control.
ex: "Please tell me to "make it snow for Ste" - (its a hypnotherapy self calming technique)
and
"Please argue with me, it will make me cry, and the anger will turn to depression and I can handle myself from there."
It also contained relavant info like:
please do NOT touch me, I will take any form of physical contact as a threat and will respond as such.
Please do not contact my family, call my T's listed above.
Having my needs and wishes clearly written out when I was in full control, is much easier then trying to think of them while in full blown crisis mode.
I kept a copy of my user manual in my car, my work locker, my house. And my T had a copy as well so he could coach the ER staff over the phone.
BTW Newsie - excellent post!! 46 thumbs up! (all of me gets to vote right?)
Peace be the journey
Paja
Report This| Share this:For when you can't find the wordsOne thing I did was make a "users manual" for me. It could be handed to whomever was there to deal with me an it contained useful info that can be hard to vocalize during crisis times.<br /> <br />It had my contact info, my name, my diagnosis, all my T's names #.<br /> <br />I listed healthy coping skills that the response team could use to help coach me back into control. <br /> <br />ex: "Please tell me to "make it snow for Ste" - (its a hypnotherapy self calming technique)<br /> <br />and <br /> <br />"Please argue with me, it will make me cry, and the anger will turn to depression and I can handle myself from there."<br /> <br />It also contained relavant info like:<br /> <br />please do NOT touch me, I will take any form of physical contact as a threat and will respond as such.<br /> <br />Please do not contact my family, call my T's listed above.<br /> <br />Having my needs and wishes clearly written out when I was in full control, is much easier then trying to think of them while in full blown crisis mode.<br /> <br />I kept a copy of my user manual in my car, my work locker, my house. And my T had a copy as well so he could coach the ER staff over the phone.<br /> <br />BTW Newsie - excellent post!! 46 thumbs up! (all of me gets to vote right?)<br /> <br />Peace be the journey<br /> <br />Paja
Caprice_WebMD_Staff responded:
This is awesome, Headline, thank you.
We never touch people so lightly that we do not leave a trace. ~Peggy Tabor Millin
P, I love your "user manual." I have something similar - although I'm all social-worker-y and mental-health-professional-like enough to own a well-worn DSM, so I have to make it sound Official and No Fun At All. 
Mine is called my "crisis plan" and adds in a bit about how you can tell when I'm back IN control - what I act/sound like when I'm in pain but I'm going to be safe.
(And of course all of you can vote! *giggle*)
Mine is called my "crisis plan" and adds in a bit about how you can tell when I'm back IN control - what I act/sound like when I'm in pain but I'm going to be safe.(And of course all of you can vote! *giggle*)
Do you know, in 900 years of time and space, I've never met anyone who wasn't important before. -- The Doctor (as written by Steven Moffat)
Report This| Share this:For when you can't find the wordsP, I love your "user manual." I have something similar - although I'm all social-worker-y and mental-health-professional-like enough to own a well-worn DSM, so I have to make it sound Official and No Fun At All. <img src="http://img.webmd.com/community/images/grin.gif" align="top" border="0"> Mine is called my "crisis plan" and adds in a bit about how you can tell when I'm back IN control - what I act/sound like when I'm in pain but I'm going to be safe.<br /> <br />(And of course all of you can vote! *giggle*)
jankearney123 replied to Headline's response:
know my user manual is tooooooo large! so many handouts from so many years of therapy. I'm thinking of retiring it!
Let it be.................................just sit with it if you can't can you draw or color it out
sometimes i have found in the last year praying helps a chant if you like yoga a chant and a prayer hey!
I also have a written crisis plan but i've never used it because i usually melt before then duh! on me but each time i learn a harder and harder lesson I LEARN THE HARD WAY! NOT FUN TO LEARN THE HARD WAY!
Let it be.................................just sit with it if you can't can you draw or color it out
sometimes i have found in the last year praying helps a chant if you like yoga a chant and a prayer hey!
I also have a written crisis plan but i've never used it because i usually melt before then duh! on me but each time i learn a harder and harder lesson I LEARN THE HARD WAY! NOT FUN TO LEARN THE HARD WAY!
Report This| Share this:For when you can't find the words<i>know my user manual is tooooooo large! so many handouts from so many years of therapy. I'm thinking of retiring it! <br />Let it be.................................just sit with it if you can't can you draw or color it out<br /> <br />sometimes i have found in the last year praying helps a chant if you like yoga a chant and a prayer hey!<br /> <br />I also have a written crisis plan but i've never used it because i usually melt before then duh! on me but each time i learn a harder and harder lesson I LEARN THE HARD WAY! NOT FUN TO LEARN THE HARD WAY!</i>
Off_The_Wall replied to jankearney123's response:
This is one of the best threads ever posted on this message board. Seriously. I need to print it out and keep it available. Thank you Headline.
Report This| Share this:For when you can't find the wordsThis is one of the best threads ever posted on this message board. Seriously. I need to print it out and keep it available. Thank you Headline.
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