I've been told by professionals in the mental health field that the feeling of "I need to SH" only lasts 15 minutes and if you can get through that then you'll be fine. I've been told a lot of different techniques to help get through that 15 minutes. Hold an ice cube in your hand until it melts, put a hair tie or rubber band on your wrist and snap it, if you're religious you can pray, draw with a pen wherever on your body you want to SH, go for a walk if you can or go for a drive if that's more your thing. I have more saved that I can find for you if you want. But, for me, the "15 minutes and you'll be fine" thing doesn't work. For me, I obsess over it until I can get the relief that I feel after SH, or until I get distracted long enough for the feeling to go away, which for me can take several days sometimes. It helps so much if I can throw myself into something completely. Reading a book I'm really interested in, painting or drawing something and being as detailed as I can, going on a walk in nature somewhere and taking photos of pretty things. Basically anything I'm very interested in and usually get really excited about, and just throw myself into it and keep it going as long as possible and trick my brain into forgetting about the "I need to SH!!" feeling. Cuddling with my S.O. or my son (he's 4) also really helps me, but I do recognize that not everyone has an S.O. or is a parent.

Honestly the only thing that actually works for me is going to spend time with a friend, someone who I love that loves me. Being engaged with a person totally takes my mind off of it, and pretty much every time afterwards I really do not want to hurt myself anymore