A trans friend of mine that I hadn't seen in like 8 months recently has been cutting themselves. They started skipping their classes to cut, cutting during classes, and during lunch breaks. All over their arms are huge marks and some of them are pretty deep. I'm worried about them attempting again and I'm trying my best to help but I've also been cutting so they don't listen to me much. I'm a gay man and their a trans man but they still use woman's restroom. They were in there for like 30 mins so I had a female friend barge in there to check in and they keep a razer blade hidden behind their phone case so idk what to do. Their cutting is BAD and I really care about them but I'm also self harming rn. Honestly if they die due to suicide, some of the ppl that are dicks to them shouldn't feel safe in their own home, If he kills himself, I swear i will do everything in my power to kill every last one of them.
#How to help a friend?
hearty garden
twin junco
First off I do have to remind you that murder is unfortunately illegal, but to answer your question, this might be a time where you have to violate their boundaries to keep them alive. If you need to, take any of their blades that you can and call 911 or a trusted adult. Pls take care of yourself as well!
Tips for things to do to stop cutting (for them or you):
- snapping a hair tie or rubber band around where you feel the need to cut
- putting bandages over the area before cutting
- drawing on the area (if you or they feel the urge to see your/their blood, use a red marker)
- pinching instead of cutting
- having something else that you focus on whenever you feel the urge to cut (ex: a book or show, arts and crafts, cooking, chores, exercise, anything you find fun and engaging)
These helped me get better, but if they don’t work for you/your friend, there are plenty of resources online! I would recommend starting with yourlifeyourvoice.org, they have a list of 99 coping skills on their website that I found very helpful