Any mental illness can cause someone to be a danger to themselves. Mental illnesses like depression can lead to self harm and suicide, but many people don’t know how to help those who suffer. Society as a whole is ignorant to the issues of mental illness, self harm, and suicide. When someone is suffering, the most important thing you can do is let them know that you are there for them, and that you’re supporting them. Never lead someone to believe that there is something wrong with them, or that they need to be fixed. This will just give them more reason to hurt themselves.

With my photo I am expressing the danger of someone believing that they need to be fixed. When there is a rip or tear in clothing, it is fixed by sewing it using a needle and thread. I applied this idea to self harm. The subject is sewing together cuts on their arm, or “fixing” them. By doing this they are only causing more harm to themselves. I used fake skin and molded it onto the subjects arm. I then cut it down the center and painted the inside red to make it look like a cut. The dark clothing the subject is wearing represents depression, they are in a dark place which is what led them to self harm. My goal with this photo is to inform people that those who self harm do not need to be fixed, and making them think they do further causes their mental health to deteriorate.