Today, Friday, November 13, is Nationwide TWLOHA Day. If you do not know, TWLOHA stands for “To Write Love on Her Arms.” This organization’s goal is to support and give hope to those struggling with self-injury and suicidal temptations. While I support this goal, you may be surprised that I do not think TWLOHA is the wonderful organization people make it out to be. While it may be awesome for some people, and their vision is in the right place, it is not quite so idyllic for me, and likely many others. My method of SI was never cutting, however, when I ran across the TWLOHA site, it was very tempting. The visual of ‘love’ being so prominently displayed on my arms sounded so desirable. The name gave me the idea of carving a heart into my arm and cutting the word ‘love’ around it. For months after seeing that site I constantly yearned to put this mark onto my arms to remind me of love. I was able to resist this, but if I had seen it at a point where I was closer to hurting myself already I do not think I could have managed to resist the urge to cut myself in that way. This is why I think it is necessary to use caution before jumping to the conclusion that websites such as TWLOHA will be a help to someone who was struggling, because to anyone out there who is like me, it could very well be a hindrance.
TWLOHA Day
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