Make a Positive Playlist to Ease Self-Harm Urges

We all have songs that bring us back to a certain moment in time. Sometimes it can be a song from your childhood that makes you feel a sense of innocence. It could be a song shared in a past relationship that brings forth some fond memories. Sometimes powerful lyrics can bring you back to a place of happiness, hardship or love.

However, songs have the ability to flick a switch in your brain and bring forward thoughts you want to push away. The problem is, sometimes music brings you to the point where you can’t make yourself to push stop. You may visualize a time when your arms were filled with fresh scars and those images could bring you to the brink of making those self-injury marks again.

Even after years without cutting, when I hear certain songs, I instantly get goose bumps. There are bands from my past that still remind me of the struggles I went through and when they are heard, my mind goes right back to those difficult times.

Music has such a way of moving your mind and your actions and, sadly, sometimes those actions and thoughts can be dangerous.

Put Together a Playlist to Ease Self-Harm Urges

Not all music brings forth negative memories that trigger you to self-harm. Most of the time, music touches your heart in a very calming, soothing ways. It’s important to find songs that are not filled with depressing words and haunting images. This can be very hard to do, especially when you truly do enjoy listening to those songs.

Make a playlist with songs that will lift your mood. Wake up and click on that playlist and start your day on a positive note. Sometimes, simply waking up in the morning can make you feel anxiety and anger. I know that I am not a morning person and during my highschool years, I’d wake up and instantly be mad at the world. That sometimes led to my reaching for paperclips on top of my desk and making a quick mark on my wrist.

However, there are so many other ways to wake us up in the morning that do not involve self-harm. Try making a playlist and when you start feeling anxious or upset, click on a song. Put the playlist on your phone or iPod and make it the main screen on your computer. Go back a few years and make some CD’s or mixed tapes. It’s scary that those are what many see as “old” these days.

But why not try it out? Wake up to songs that leave a positive mark on your day, not a painful one.

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