Posted by fallsfall on March 6, 2004, at 9:36:10
In reply to Re: can i do this?....may trigger » Elle2021, posted by Dinah on March 6, 2004, at 9:01:23
I don't cut, but I do the "skin picking" thing. When I find myself getting tense and starting to search out my favorite places I try to substitute something calming instead. This idea is sort of the opposite of the rubber band or ice ideas, because it doesn't give me an alternative way to "hurt" - it gives me comfort. Just as there are many ways and reasons to SI, there are many ways to decrease SI. If the standard ones don't work, you might want to try mine.
I carry a rabbit's foot in my pocket (and have for 8 years). When I need comfort, I feel the soft fur on my rabbit's foot. The rabbit's foot is small enough to hide in my pocket (along with my chapstick). Sometimes, I just put my hand in my pocket, and that is enough. It is also small enough so that if I take it out of my pocket, it is not particularly intrusive - often people do not know that I am "using" it. It also has a chain, so if I am very needy, but I also have to get something else done, I can hang it off one of my fingers and have my hand free for whatever I have to do.
A couple of words of caution:
1. Check for toenails, and cut them off.
2. I recently found a beautiful purple rabbit's foot, but when I "work" it the dye comes off on my hands - I'm trying to rinse the dye out but I haven't succeeded yet. A second (red) rabbit's foot that I bought at the same time doesn't stain my hands.
3. If you have shallow pockets, put a safety pin through the pocket and through the chain to ensure that it doesn't fall out of your pocket.
4. I had one rabbit's foot for more than 7 years - I wore it out. When I got my new rabbit's feet, I put it on my headboard, so that if I needed a rabbit's foot when I was in bed (and didn't have a pocket nearby) I would have one handy. My dog ate it. I was very upset.
5. I found my latest rabbit's feet at a small, downtown hardware store. I had looked many other places.
One favorite story. My son went into the Army and I went to visit him to see his Basic Training Graduation. It was a difficult time for me (for reasons unrelated to my son) and I was very glad to have my rabbit's foot with me. At one point, just after Graduation, my son and I were walking across the base and a soldier came running up behind me. He had seen me drop my rabbit's foot, and wanted to return it to me. I was pleased that our Army was encouraging such compassion and attention to detail - and I was so glad to have it back.
poster:fallsfall
thread:320171
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20040303/msgs/321079.html