Me in a wedding dress. haha.
From the bridal shoot yesterday.
Photography: Shawna Mcleod
i rarely do personal posts (as it takes me a lot of courage to open myself up) but i think today is an important day as it means a lot to me. i know that people from school have my tumblr but i’m not ashamed of my past or what i am about to say.
about 7 or 8 months ago now i started self harming. first it started off as a few cuts when i was drunk, then it started turning into a regular thing which took over me and made me think, feel and act differently. i had morphed into a person which i didn’t even have control over anymore. anyway, that isn’t the point of this post.
i started seeing a therapist and i have been clean since late october. it was extremely tough and i still struggle every day, but i am still so proud of the progress i have made.
i thought it would be good to post a picture of my scars (which have faded a lot since october) and show all of you that you should embrace and love who you are, and show you that you have the strength to do anything if you believe in yourself enough. my scars are a part of me, but they aren’t me. there are so many things to me other than my scars and although it seems sometimes as if my self harm defines me, i know that isn’t true.
my scars show that i am a strong enough person to fight the addiction that consumed me.
my scars show that no matter how tough life seems, i have enough power to continue.
my scars show that i am strong, and brave enough to face my internal battles head on and win.
yes, people stared. yes, people whispered. yes, people asked ‘OMG WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR ARM?!’ at my school prom. but you know what? i am a stronger person because of what I suffered and a stronger person for beating my addiction to self harm. my scars will be with me for a long time, but i have now learnt that what other people say, think or do doesn’t matter to me anymore, all that i care about is that i am healthy and happy, and i finally feel like i am moving towards that place.
self harm awareness day
1st march 2012
