psyke.org - self injury information and resources

About   Contact   Search


Back to: psyke.org » FAQ's

First Aid

Copyright, Jen, original location

Here's the deal: You have cut, burned, bruised, or sprained yourself or part of yourself. You have to take care of the injuries, but you don't know how. All you know is that you are scared to tell anybody what happened, for fear they'll find out how it happened. This information on basic first aid is no substitute for a doctors advice. All it is is what I, a cutter, have done for myself. It seems to work. Please remember, I have not received any formal medical education, and therefore this advice is strictly objective. I am not responsible for additional injury incured because you followed it.

Cuts

Okay. You cut yourself. You want to take care of the cut, so it doesn't get infected. But you're not quite sure how. I have some basic things listed below. Once again, I am not a medical professional. This is just what has worked for me.

Minor cuts

Very little blood, more like scratches or paper cuts.

Moderate cuts

Bleeds more, the edges don't close up on their own. Does not go through any veins and there are no little lumps floating up (these would be fat).

Moderately severe cuts

Edges gape, deep, you can maybe see fat, and it could go through a vein.

Severe cuts

Bleeds quite a bit. Small peices of fat float up, they look like little rice crispies, kind of. It is at least a quarter of an inch deep.

Burns

Here's the scoop: You've burned yourself. It hurts. You wish maybe you hadn't done it. Or maybe you're glad you did. Either way, you have to take care of it, or you could end up really sick. So, here's what you can do for yourself:

First degree burns (red, sore)

Any burn worse than the one described above should be seen by a doctor. If you don't want to go to the doctor, tough. Make up something about how it happened if you have to. Just go.

Sprains

Somehow, you've sprained something. It could be your ankle, your knee, your elbow, wrist, shoulder... even a finger. What can you do for it?

Remember, none of this advice should replace that of a physician. This is just what's worked for me. Take care of yourself, okay? Also, if anybody wants to, they can e-mail me at kyukidojen@usa.net


Articles, personal stories, poems etc. are owned by the Author.
The rest of this site is copyright 2001, Ratatosk
Updated 2001-10-08

Valid XHTML 1.0   Valid CSS