Self-Harm

There is a moment only you know. The moment when the inner pressure has grown so large that it needs an outlet — at any price. A cut. A burn. A strike. And afterward, for a brief instant, it is quieter. Not good. But bearable. The unbearable inner pain has finally found an outside where it is allowed to show itself.

Perhaps you feel ashamed of it. Perhaps you hide the traces under long sleeves. Perhaps you have told no one because you are afraid they will think you are crazy, dramatic, ungrateful. Perhaps you do not even understand yourself why you do it. You only know: if you don't, the pressure becomes unbearable. And when you do, you can breathe again — for a while.