The Benefits of Keeping a Journal
Its hard, living a life of secrets, being different. If no one knows you self-injure, no one knows the thoughts that go through your head, it can feel like everything has got pent up inside. Thats where keeping a journal comes in. Whether its of paper or online you can say anything you want, and no facades are necessary. Online, all you need to do is make up a pseudonymn and no one knows who you are. You can let hate and anger, angst and pain all spill out.
Sometimes self-injury seems to be the only way to express your feelings, but if you can put words to them you can write them down. Then at least they will not fester inside. No matter how terrible the thought, you can say it, because no one you know will see it.
Many self-injurers keep online diaries. They really provide the best of both worlds. You can be anonymous and free to write whatever and however you like, and you also can let other people read what you have written and read their work, share advice and comfort.
Most online diaries are free, and they are much easier than creating a website. You gain a community, one that you might never meet or want to meet in real life. Almost like a support group but one where no one will ever recognise you on the street unless you want them to.
The three most popular providers are Diaryland, LiveJournal and Blogger. All are free though Blogger places adverts on its free pages. Diaryland has rings especially for self-injurers and people have created templates for the diaries. Livejournal has communities of self-injurers where you can post as you would on a forum.
By making your feelings external in a diary you can at least remove them from yourself. And be true to yourself, without the "happy face" of everyday. Other people can help you, in conditions that you control, and you can help others. It is something I highly recommend.
Diaryland Templates
Enchanted Designs has many Pagan designs, faeries, etc. Very pretty.
Render Design includes gay and lesbian templates.
Fallen Star Designs has a number of SI designs, lyrics from Jack off Jill, that sort of thing.
Raging Pistachio Designs a range of templates, you have to host the images yourself.
Pixelscripts diaryland templates, decent selection of free ones.
Not that Ugly Design a small selection of templates, good ones, there used to be more but the site moved.
J Designs particularly excellent imageless designs.
Migraine Designs absolutely lovely templates but you do have to host the images yourself.
Sazzy Design urban designs, including many intended for people of colour.
Starting the Insanity huge selection of templates, some rather strange, most very cool.
Lucky Designs very nice, clean templates.
Paragon Designs interesting templates, including two specifically cutting ones (trigger warning)
Spy Designs could use a little work on the templates, but has some of people you won't find elsewhere - like Bob Dylan.
Diaryland Sites of Interest
Cutters Club an open diary where anyone can post on self-injury.
The Self-Injury Directory websites and diaryland sites to do with SI.
Diaryland Diaryrings on SI
Livejournal Communities
Note that I am unsure whether some of these are pro-SI or not..you will have to use discretion