Welcome Hope. I'm so glad you found us. There are so very many wonderful people here. I to am a survivor of sexual abuse, so I know how difficult it is to even think about it, much less speak the words. Remember one thing... you're in therapy and you're beginning to talk about it. You're actively taking steps towards a better life for you. Congratulations are in order for that. I have been cutting since I was about 13 or so. I'm 26 now. There have been times where I went without, only to fail again. The thing to remember is that cutting can easily become an addiction, so stopping can be extremely difficult. There's about a million and a half things I do to distract myself when I'm being nailed with the urges. Watch a movie or TV show I like and can really get into. Excercise. Read a book that I have to concentrate. Call a someone I haven't talked to in a while (that way there's a lot to talk about). Participate in any hobby that you enjoy so that you can keep your hands busy. And if the urge gets too bad, you can take a rubber band and wrap it around your wrist and pop it. It's hurts really bad but it's not cutting. That one has helped me a lot. Granted it's still a form of SI, but it's better than cutting. I hope some of these distractions will work for you. Please take good care of yourself and talk to us when you're in trouble.

ryan