Self-Harm and Tattoos #WATWB

Hey guys! Welcome to another month of We Are The World Blogfest! (Can you believe it’s already been a month? Seriously, where is time going?)

Anyway, I’d first like to thank my fellow co-hosts this month: Michelle Wallace, Peter Nena, Andrea Michaels and Shilpa Garg.

I came across this inspiring post on Facebook one day, and it really warmed my heart. Let me preface this by saying that if you follow me regularly, you know that my heart goes out to those who are suicidal, depressed, and who self-harm. I wrote a book about it that broke my heart, and ever since then, I have tried my best to raise awareness to the fact that they are not alone. So, this news story, it really spoke to my heart when I read it.

This girl struggled with self-harm, and when she recovered, she wanted to cover up the difficult reminder of her past, a lot like my MC in Delivered by Angels.

Throughout her teens, Lovett has struggled with depression and self-harm. Although she stopped self-harming a few years ago, she says her scars are a constant reminder of her pain.

“It’s very hard when you’re a couple of years clean from doing it and every day you’re constantly reminded of what you did. It brings back memories of how you felt then. There’s a lot of shame that comes with it and guilt, especially when you’re around your family,” Lovett said.

So Lovett decided to tattoo something beautiful over her ‘ugly’ scars but couldn’t find a tattoo artist to take on the job. Apparently, tattooing over scarred skin is difficult and rarely looks as good as on a smooth canvas.

Then she met Ryan Kelly. The young tattoo artist lost his mentor and best friend to suicide last year and struggled with his own anxiety for most of his life.

You can read the rest of the story here.

It’s encouraging to know that there are good and decent people out there who are willing to help, despite the difficulty of tattooing scarred flesh. He knew the pain associated with self-harm, and he just wanted to help. ❤ ❤

If you’re struggling with self-harm or suicidal thoughts, consider contacting the National Suicidal Prevention Line at 1-800-273-8255.

And for more inspiring stories, please follow along on the WATWB!

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Hairstylist helps teen with depression – #WATWB

Thank you for joining us for another month of the We Are The World Blogfest where we spotlight positive news instead of the more popular negative news. And, we want to thank this month’s hosts for all of their hard work! Simon Falk, Inderpreet Uppal, Lynn Hallbrooks, Eric Lahti, and Mary J Giese.

If you’ve followed me or my blog over the past few years, you know I wrote a book about depression, and then I did a month on my blog about #youarenotalone. I came across this article on Chicken Soup for the Soul’s Twitter page, and I knew I had to share it.

A young girl walked into a salon to get her hair cut before school. She shared with the hairstylist that she was to depressed to even brush her hair. All she could do was get up and use the restroom. The young girl just wanted all her hair cut off, nothing special, but the hairstylist had other plans. They spent eight hours working to help this young girl out.

Recognizing that this young girl deserved the best treatment the salon had to offer, Olsson made sure they took good care of her. They worked on her hair for eight hours, doing everything in their power to help this girl feel good about her upcoming school pictures.

“At the end of the day I want this to be a lesson to people. MENTAL HEALTH is a thing, it effects people all around the world and of all ages! PARENTS take it serious don’t just push your kids off and tell them to get over something they legitimately can’t. A CHILD should NEVER feel so worthless to not even want to brush their hair,” Olsson wrote.

Read the full story here.

I honestly believe we should help everyone with depression realize that they aren’t alone; that they’re worthy; and that they are human. It’s my goal as an author and just a person to help anyone I can see their worth, so this story really resonates with me. I hope this was a beacon to that young girl, a reminder that she is not alone and that she is worthy. ❤

We are the world, and we need to shine our light.

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