If I Were In Your Shoes...

Dear El G. Nie,

I have this acquaintance and she’s your normal teenage girl, right?  except for the fact that I think she cuts herself.   I can’t say she does because I don’t know her like that.  But, I saw a bunch of scratches on her arms.  When I asked her, she said a cat did it.   Maybe her mom may buy that lame story but I think there’s more to it than that.  I want to reach out to her in a way and be a friend but of course I don’t know how.  So how would you approach the situation?

From: Worried

Dear Worried,

If this girl is your friend and she trusts you,  she will open up.  You can talk straight and simply ask her,” Is everything okay?”  If she says yes, you can answer,  ”I don’t think it is; I think you’re hurting yourself.”  She can get upset and stop talking to you or she can open up to you and tell you why she’s hurting herself.  If this girl is hurting herself,  it can mean she is dealing with alot of emotions and doesn’t know how to express herself.  If it gets to the point where she confides in you and needs more help than you can give her,  help her go to an adult that she can trust.
 

From El G. Nie