Divya hears someone mumbling. She looks around the corner and sees Mags there, crying.

Divya: Mags! Are you alright?

Mags looks up at Divya, her nose sniffling.

Mags: N-no! (sobbing)

Divya: Oh, sweet Mags! What happened?

Mags: Well...M-My friend…

At that moment, Adiba and Zohra come running in as if it’s an emergency! Adib carries a poster board outstretched that looks like this:

Adiba scurries off once she sees that Divya and Mags saw the board.

Zohra: WARNING! WARNING! Mags’ story involves self harm! It is not a true story and it has not happened as far as we know! What is self harm, you ask? Well, I’m happy you did! ‘Cause now I get to blabber all my smartness out at all of you lovely people! Here I go!

Self harm is a way of dealing with emotional pain. It may help you express feelings you can’t put into words, distract you from your life, or release emotional pain. Afterwards, you probably feel better—at least for a little while. But then the painful feelings return, and you feel the urge to hurt yourself again.

Self harm  includes anything you do to intentionally injure yourself.

Some of the common ways include:

• Cutting or severely scratching your skin
• Burning or scalding yourself
• Hitting yourself or banging your head
• Punching things or throwing your body against walls and hard objects
• Sticking objects into your skin
• Intentionally preventing wounds from healing
• Swallowing poisonous substances or inappropriate objects

Whatever the reasons for self-harming, it’s important to know that there is help available if you want to stop. You can learn other ways to cope with everything that’s going on inside without having to hurt yourself.

Zohra: And that’s it for meee! Now, Mags can tell her story to Divi!

Mags and Divya look at each other, flabbergasted.

Divya: How...did you…

Mags: ...know...that?

Zohra has a twinkle in her eye now.

Zohra: A magician never reveals her secrets. (bows to the two ladies and walks off)

Mags and Divya look at each other again.

Mags: Huh?

Divya: I have no idea. Just continue with your story, so I can try to help you!

Mags: Oh, okay...Well, a friend of mine just told me about one of his friends a-and…It was just so sad! I didn’t know how to comfort him or anything! I felt so helpless! I-I-I… (sobbing once again)

Divya puts her hand on Mags’ shoulder.

Divya: Calm down, sweets. Just tell me the story, okay?

Mags: Okay...Um, these were his exact words…”Miles and I were fr…”

Just then, Riya and Teslim run into the room, looking like wild animals.

Teslim: Has she told the story yet? (staring intensely at Mags)

Mags and Divya, once again, look at each other, mystified.

Divya: How do all of you know about it and I’m just now hearing it?

Mags: Um, Divi? I didn’t tell any of them…

Riya: Anywhooo...Back to business! Teslim and I have for you some of the consequences of self harm ready to explain to ya!

Teslim: First off, we have:

Relief from cutting or self-harm is short lived, and is quickly followed by other feelings like shame and guilt. Meanwhile, it keeps you from learning more effective strategies for feeling better.

Riya: Too true, too true...

Next up: Keeping the secret of self-harm is difficult and lonely.

Maybe you feel ashamed or maybe you just think that no one would understand. But hiding who you are and what you feel is a heavy burden. Ultimately, the guilt affects your relationships with friends and family members and how you feel about yourself.

Teslim: We’ll come back to that one in the story...

Now, for the next consequence: You can hurt yourself badly,

even if you don’t mean to. It’s easy to end up with an infected wound or misjudge the depth of a cut, especially if you’re also using drugs or alcohol.

Riya: Please, don’t do any underage drugs or alcohol...
Number 4: You’re at risk for bigger problems down the line.

If you don’t learn other ways to deal with emotional pain, you increase your risk of major depression, drug, alcohol addiction, and suicidal thoughts.

Teslim: That’s so sad...

Lastly: Self-harm can become addictive. It may start off as an impulse or something you do to feel more in control, but soon it feels like the cutting or self-harming is controlling you. It often turns into a compulsive behavior that seems impossible to stop.

Riya: And that’s a rap!

Riya grabs Teslim’s hand and rushes her out the door. A moment later, Teslim’s head peeps in.

Teslim: Bye, Divi! Bye Mags! Enjoy the story!

And she’s dragged away by Riya again. Divya and Mags are left shocked.

Mags looks up at Divya.

Mags: Welp...I guess I should continue?

Divya shakes out of her shock and looks down at Mags.

Divya: Um, yeah! Go ahead! (sits down beside Mags)

Mags: So, as I said, these are my friend’s exact words…(not a true story)

Myles and I were friends for quite some time. We were so close. We did everything together. We could never be torn apart. That is, until Myles’ parents died in a car accident at the beginning of the school year. He was taken away from me, sent to his aunt’s house where he would live the rest of his teenage years.

We called each other multiple times every day. We talked about literally everything. Mostly about how different our lives were after the separation. He was homeschooled, which was a totally new thing. He said he hated it and I don’t blame him. He always was such a social butterfly. A butterfly forced to be a recluse. The exact opposite of me. A recluse forced to be a butterfly. My parents were worried that I wouldn’t do anything, so they signed me up for a bunch of weekend camps that they forced me to go to.

Both Myles and I were growing farther apart from the people we used to be. He was turning angsty and depressed. He told me every day that he swore he would do it. I would talk him out of it and then the next day, he would say it again, totally unaware of what I said the day before. It was like his brain was blocking out all the good things and keeping all the bad things close in his thoughts at all times.

By the end of the school year, we were only speaking to each other once or twice a month. I really wanted to call him all the time, but I was afraid to because I didn’t want to hear any of his depressing talk. His sickness was messing with my head. So, as a result, we drifted apart.

We went about our lives, doing as we pleased, ignoring each other at all costs. We went our separate ways and that was the end of it. But, I missed Myles with such intensity sometimes. I missed him with everything that I did. I prayed that he was okay. I wanted him to stay safe. And, without me, how would he do that. He was too unstable for his own wellbeing. But, I was afraid we would never see each other again. He would just fade into darkness and I wouldn’t be there to help.

But, I paid him a surprise visit in the middle of summer. There were some scars and scabs spread across his arms and legs. It looks like he totally forgot all the times I told him not to. My whole body drooped at the sight of my formerly best friend in such pain. I was so distraught because Myles was in all that excruciation. I asked him why he did it. All he said was, “I’m sorry.”

And he broke down, crying. I didn’t know how I could help, so I just stood there and watched his soul break right in front of me.

When I got home that night, I went straight to bed and tried not to leave it. I faked sickness for a whole month just to stay in bed. But, eventually, my parents caught on. They made me go out. They made me talk to people. They made me go to school when it came time. Eventually, I started doing all these willingly. They didn’t have to force me anymore. I was out of that phase of darkness caused by the side effects of the trauma my friend went through.

I haven’t seen Myles since that fateful day. But, I pray for him daily with all my might. I still miss him every single day. He was my best friend. Now, we don’t talk. I wish I did something differently. I wish I kept talking to him every day. Maybe things would have ended differently.

Both Divya and Mags are crying by the end of the story. They’re hugging and sobbing all over each other.

Divya: Mags...do you...want...to give any tips to...prevent this from happening ever again? (in between sobs)

Mags: ...Sure…

And then Lily runs through the doors, yelling something.

Lily: IS THE STORY OVER???????

Mags and Divya are no longer surprised by the anomaly of them knowing.

Divya: Uhh...Yeah? Just finished it up. Mags was going to…

Lily: Great! I got here just in time! Phew! Here are four ways you can try to get help if you or a friend or loved one is self-harming!

1)Confide in someone:

If you’re ready to get help for cutting or self-harm, the first step is to confide in another person. It can be scary to talk about the very thing you have worked so hard to hide, but it can also be a huge relief to finally let go of your secret and share what you’re going through.

2) Identify your self harm or cutting triggers:

Understanding what triggers you to self harm is a big step towards recovery.What feelings make you want to hurt yourself? Sadness? Anxiety? Anger? Loneliness? Shame? Numbness?

If you're having a hard time figuring that out,that means you have to work on your emotional awareness. Emotional awareness means knowing what you are feeling and why. It’s the ability to identify and express what you are feeling from moment to moment and to understand the connection between your feelings and your actions.The idea of paying attention to your feelings—rather than numbing them or releasing them through self-harm—may sound scary to you. You may be afraid that you’ll get overwhelmed or be stuck with the pain. But the truth is that emotions quickly come and go if you let them. If you don’t try to fight, judge, or beat yourself up over the feeling, you’ll find that it soon fades, replaced by another emotion. It’s only when you pay attention  to the feeling that it persists.

3) Finding coping techniques of alternatives:
Self-harm is your way of dealing with unpleasant feelings and difficult situations. If you’re going to stop, you need to have alternative ways of coping so you can respond differently when you feel like cutting or hurting yourself.
If you self-harm to express pain and intense emotions, you could:

     • Start a journal in which to express your feelings

• Compose a poem or song to say what you feel
• Write down any negative feelings and then rip the paper up
     • Listen to music
     •Take a soothing bath
    • Confide in someone
    • Exercise
     • Punch a cushion or mattress or scream into your pillow
   • Squeeze a stress ball or squish Play-Doh or clay
  • Rip something up (sheets of paper, a magazine)

4) Taking professional help

The help and support of a trained professional can help you work to overcome the cutting or self-harming habit, so consider talking to a therapist. A therapist can help you develop new coping techniques and strategies to stop self-harming, while also helping you get to the root of why you hurt you.

Lily: And that’s the end! Thank you for showing up!


She leaves the room, leaving Divya and Mags confused.


Divya: Wow...Do you know what just happened?

Mags: Well, no. But, I actually feel a lot better! And I think everybody will benefit from this a whole bunch!

Divya: Huh...I agree!

Mags and Divya also leave the room.

[scene]

Hello dear teens,

We are here with an update.

Credits to chaotic_naturx
caramellattelover
sidneetlover13
peaceful_writter