A professional, long-term supporter of LifeSIGNS is writing an Anthology of personal stories surrounding self-injury. The whole idea is to offer each individual a platform to tell their own story and then allow those stories to standalone in the book. This will enable readers to arrive at their own decisions based on these stories and not on an ‘expert’ or author interpreting other peoples lives / experiences / feelings / values!

This is a project LifeSIGNS is very keen to support. It’s an excellent opportunity for you to be published and have your voice heard, and so we hope as many of you as possible will take the time to participate.

Self-injury / harm is a topic that currently attracts a substantial amount of attention within the health, social and education arenas. A large amount of literature exists in a variety of formats including reports, research papers, booklets, online sites, and guidelines. A substantial proportion of this material has been written by ‘experts’ (i.e. the non self-harming / injuring individual). This proposal is intended to address this by offering individuals the opportunity of contributing to a book that will enable the reader to formulate their own opinion(s) around this subject area based on a range of people’s individual experiences.

The following are offered as possible ideas that might assist in constructing your story in a confidential manner. This list is only a guide and they are not intended to be answered as a ‘list’ but merely to help you construct the paragraphs of your personal story. Please only write about areas you feel comfortable with, and feel free to include any additional information you wish.

Details of participant:

▪         No names to ensure confidentiality

▪         Initial (e.g. A) + gender + age (or area; e.g. 20’s)

▪         Role (voluntary) – son/daughter; parent; student; etc.

▪         Area – county; region; country (e.g. Hertfordshire; South; England)

Details of history:

▪         Age of first incident

▪         ‘Trigger’ (if known)

▪         Activity (self-harming/injuring)

▪         Outcome  (relief; anxiety reduction; etc.)

Has anyone else been informed (by you), including:

▪         Friends

▪         Family

▪         Colleagues

▪         Professionals (e.g. Doctors, nurses, teachers)

If so, what was the reaction:

▪         Supportive

▪         Angry

▪         Embarrassed

▪         Judgemental/non-judgemental

▪         Other

Have you thought about some/most/all of the following:

▪         Why you might need to self-harm/injure

▪         Trying to stop, look for an alternative

▪         Seeking advice/help/answers [from direct contact; online]

You might also like to include any help you have received, what you have found most helpful, and the things that have been less helpful.

Please ensure that you focus on thoughts, feelings and reasons behind your emotional distress and self-injury and not on the method or severity of self-injury. As always, please avoid graphic or triggering language.

In order to give readers a more realistic perspective of self-injury than is often portrayed in the media, we really hope a wide range of people, of all ages and backgrounds etc will agree to participate.

Please send your stories to Jules@FirstSigns.org.uk and please do email me if you have questions.

Many thanks and we look forward to hearing you!