WHEN & WHY IT STARTED, WITNESSING IT IN OTHERS, & HOW I CAME THROUGH IT | SELF-HARM AWARENESS DAY 2025

“Resilience isn't a single skill. It's a variety of skills and coping mechanisms. To bounce back from bumps in the road as well as failures...”

Jean Chatzky

This year, for Self-Harm Awareness Day, I thought I’d create this slightly(!) jumbled-up post and it is honestly, mostly a mess because I actually just found out it was this Awareness Day at about half three in the afternoon on the day of it! So, this post is basically full of bits and pieces about my experiences of self-harm, things related to self-harm which I’ve learnt and witnessed throughout my mental health journey, and advice I would give to someone who is utilising it as a coping skill…

DEAR RUBY, | HOW MY KITTEN IS MAKING MY DREAMS COME TRUE | NATIONAL KITTEN DAY 2023

Dear Ruby,

When I first decided to get another cat after losing my lovely little Calico rescue; Emmy, in October 2022, I explained to absolutely everyone that the largest inspiration for the decision was the fact that my two mini-Lionhead bunnies (Luna and Gracie) are always cuddled up together in another room. I never get to handle them, and they very rarely are even in the same room as me… So, I wanted a companion for myself. I wanted a new little life who would snuggle with me, sleep in my bed, follow me around, and want to play. I wanted to be able to come home and hear a little patter of paws come running towards me with a little ‘meow’ by way of a greeting!