Pat's Answer

Welcome to Ask Pat, 

Thank you for your question. It is very brave of you to contact us about this.  

It sounds like you are going through a difficult time at the moment. You mentioned you feel depressed and have questions about the best way to cope.   

We understand that experiences of depression are not easy for a young person to go through. It can be really tough to know how to cope when dealing with difficult emotions. Some people start to use self-harm as an attempt to deal with such intense emotions. 

From what you have described, you have stopped harming, but you are starting to feel hopeless now that no one can help you remain clean or can help you to feel happy again. It is important to know that you can feel happy again and there are other ways to cope when things are tough aside from self-harming. 

Childline understands that self-harming can sometimes feel additive and it can be very difficult to stop. We would be concerned to hear that you are going through this and you have the right to get help and support. Psychological interventions and other support services can be extremely helpful in this case, and they can include trying to make sense of the reasons behind self-harm, and, importantly, finding new coping strategies 

You may find it useful to contact Pieta house (www.pieta.ie), or Jigsaw (www.jigsaw.ie) who offer support to young people going through these issues. There is also support and information on the HSE website www.yourmentalhealth.ie , where you can find information about many issues related to mental health. 

Perhaps you would like to chat about how you are feeling some more by calling Childline on 1800 66 66 66, texting us on 50101 or via our webchat service on www.childline.ie Childline is always here to listen to and support you, in good times and in bad

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Take care,

Pat