Self-Help for managing self-harm and suicidal thoughts

Need to talk to someone?

If you are a child or young person and need some mental health support please talk to someone about how you are feeling. If you don’t feel you can talk to a family member or someone at school, consider some of the helplines or text support below. You are not alone. 

Support from the NHS

The wellbeing and emotional support teams in schools service is designed to help children and young people ages 5-18 years access mental health and wellbeing support early on in educational settings. It's all about ensuring children and young people can get access to the right help as early as possible.

The Reach4Wellbeing team supports and promotes the emotional wellbeing of young people and parents of primary school age children through interactive online group programmes, using cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) principles.

NHS Herefordshire and Worcestershire Talking Therapies is open to young people aged 16 and over. They provide a range of support, including online therapy, groups and courses and 1:1 support. The team can also help you find and access a variety of groups, courses and activities delivered by voluntary, charity and social enterprise providers that can support your physical and mental wellbeing. You can self-refer online in your own time and you don't need to go to your doctor/GP first.

Other helpful links

Kooth is a really good website which offers online counselling and support by text, e-mail or by chatting on the forum for ages 10-18 years.

The Blues Programme  is an internationally acclaimed wellbeing programme for young people aged 13-19. Over six weeks, it teaches emotional resilience, and reduces low mood and anxious thoughts. Crucially, it gets teenagers talking.

Worcestershire ChatHealth is a service where 11-19 years olds can text 07507331750 to speak to their School Health Nurse for confidential advice and support around a variety of issues, including bullying, emotional health, relationship problems, alcohol and drugs.

YoungMinds Textline offers you free, 24/7 text messaging support wherever you are in the UK. If you need someone to talk to about how you’re feeling, text YM to 85258.

Worrying thoughts

Other worrying symptoms might include hearing voices, feelings of unreality, becoming very angry or violent, showing signs of an eating disorder or becoming very withdrawn. If you are a young person experiencing such thoughts, please talk to someone about how you are feeling and if you don’t feel you can talk to a family member, consider some of the helplines or text support. You are not alone. 

Suicidal thoughts

If you are expressing suicidal thoughts or feeling like you wish to harm yourself or someone else, you should speak to a medical professional as soon as possible. Many people express suicidal thoughts because they are feeling overwhelmed and may not really want to act on them, but it is still very frightening. If you need help in an emergency phone 999.

Need help quickly?

If you have taken an overdose or self-harmed and you are concerned that the cuts are very deep or there is serious blood loss go to A&E or call 999. 

Emergency help and helplines

Herefordshire and Worcestershire 24 hour urgent mental health helpline. 

Whether you feel your mental health problems have become much worse or are experiencing problems for the first time, you may need help quickly. You can phone the mental health helpline for urgent advice: 0808 196 9127 (free phone 24 hrs a day 365 days a year)

The team will offer advice, support and, if required, an assessment to understand how you are feeling. When calling the number, you can expect to speak to Mental Health Advisors and/or trained Mental Health Clinicians who will be able to listen to your concerns and help make appropriate plans with you to support you.

This service is available for people of all ages, and accessible to friends and family of someone in distress too.

If you just need to talk, any time of day or night

These services offer confidential advice from trained volunteers. You can talk about anything that's troubling you, no matter how difficult:

Alternative local support

  • Worcestershire Safe Haven provides telephone support and face-to-face appointments to Worcestershire residents who are experiencing a mental health crisis. Call 01905 600400 any day of the week between 6pm and midnight for support and signposting.
  • Herefordshire Mind Safe Haven if you find yourself in crisis or need urgent support with your mental health, the Safe Haven is a safe and friendly place that you can come and access mental health support and advice.The Safe Haven telephone and email support service is available every evening, 7 days a week, from 5pm to 10pm; call 01432 372407 or email safehaven@herefordshire-mind.org.uk.

Self harm

Self-harm is when someone hurts themselves on purpose to relieve feelings of distress. People sometimes self-harm when life feels hard to cope with. (Young Mind). Self-harm is often a symptom of another underlying emotional difficulties. Visit your GP or speak your school if you want to find out what services you can access for further support if you haven’t already.

There are strategies you can use to manage the urge to self-harm. The urge to self-harm is like a wave. It often increases before it decreases and then disappears. To ride the wave, it is helpful to identify coping strategies to replace the self-harming behaviours. Look through the resources below for ideas of how you can manage these urges until it passes. Everyone is different and what works for one person may not work for everyone!

If you’re worried about a friend who is self-harming, always tell a trusted adult. They can help your friend get the support they need.

Apps

Calm Harm

Calm Harm aims to help young people manage the urge to self-harm. It follows a treatment called Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) which encourages people who self-harm to learn to be mindful of their emotions, to learn ways to recognise them and manage them differently.

Bestie

An award winning app in Herefordshire and Worcestershire for young people's wellbeing.

Finch

Finch is a self care pet app that helps you feel prepared and positive, one day at a time. Take care of your pet by taking care of yourself! Choose from a wide variety of self care exercises personalized for you. Struggling with stress, mental health, or need motivation?

Mindshift

MindShift app is based on to help young adults cope with anxiety, by acting as a portable coach that guides users through challenging situations. Designed in collaboration with Anxiety Canada, this app teaches users how to relax and helps them identify active steps to directly face and take charge of their anxiety.

The app provides a variety of methods for young people to respond to anxiety including; developing their knowledge of anxiety and symptoms, engaging in relaxation tasks, evaluating their level of anxiety in particular situations, developing realistic thinking patterns and changing behaviour. 

Specific tools help users tackle issues such as improving their sleep quality, dealing with perfectionism, and handling conflict. These tools address everyday situations that contribute to increased levels of anxiety, in order to help users change their overall relationship with anxiety. The goal is to help young people learn and practice anxiety coping skills.

Smiling mind

Smiling Mind is designed to help people pressure, stress, and challenges of daily life. This app has a fantastic section on Mindfulness in the Classroom. An especially good choice for the younger users out there, as it was created specifically with students in mind. Smiling Mind offers programs for a variety of age groups, including 7-9, 10-12, 13-15, 16-18 and adults. The app has an easy-to-use interface for keeping track of your progress over time, both in terms of how many sessions you complete and how your emotions change.

Calm

Calm is the perfect meditation app for beginners, but also includes hundreds of programs for intermediate and advanced users. Guided meditation sessions are available in lengths of 3, 5, 10, 15, 20 or 25 minutes so you can choose the perfect length to fit with your schedule.

Enjoy 100+ guided meditations to help you manage anxiety, lower stress and sleep better. Sleep Stories are soothing tales read by well-known voices to help people unwind and fall into a deep sleep each evening. Also enjoy 10 minute guided video lessons on mindful movement and gentle stretching.

SAM

SAM is an app to help you understand and manage anxiety.

Think Ninja

This app from Healios, helps young people aged 11 to 17 years old with their mental health, emotional well-being and resilience.

Worry Tree

The WorryTree app aims to help you take control of worry wherever you are.  WorryTree helps you record, manage and problem solve your worries and anxiety based on Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) techniques. 

Downloadable documents

Grounding cards

Grounding Techniques

STOPP cards

Useful information

Helplines:

  • Shout – Text the word SHOUT to 85258 and someone will text you back to talk about how you are feeling
  • Kooth 
  • Samaritans: 116 123
  • Childline: 0800 1111
  • The Mix: support and advice for under 25s, including a helpline, crisis messenger service and webchat. Call 0808 808 4994 or for the crisis messenger service, text THEMIX to 85258 

Find out more:

I’m a Parent

I’m a Teacher

Suicidal Thoughts and Feelings:

Suicidal feelings can be either having thoughts about ending your life or people being better off without you. It can also mean thinking about methods of suicide or making clear plans (Mind).

If you haven’t already, look at the resources above. You may also find it helpful to look through the following:

Helplines:

If you are having thoughts of suicide or are concerned for a young person who might be you can contact HOPELINEUK for confidential support and practical advice.

Opening hours: 9am – midnight every day of the year (Weekends and Bank Holidays included)