【Secretive Boarding House】

LONDON -- A student recreated Vincent Van Gogh's iconic painting The Secretive Boarding HouseNight Café on her leg to help her cope with self-harm and depression.

SEE ALSO: Instagram's new support tool could help people with mental illness

18-year-old Amelia Hall -- a student at the University of Manchester -- wanted to create a beautiful painting as way of dealing with thoughts of self-harm.

"Self-harm is something I've struggled with as a way of coping with depression, but in the last few months I've decided it's no longer something I wanted to do," Hall explained.

"I wanted to find a more positive way of coping. This is why I chose to paint on my leg instead."

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

Hall says she's always loved painting, and it has been through this love that she found a distraction technique.

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"I wanted to recreate a beautiful painting and do something positive to cope. Painting on myself is something I've done before and has always worked, and I know that drawing on yourself is an alternative coping method that is often spoken about," says Hall.

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

According to the Royal College of Psychiatrists, drawing on your skin can be a way to "cope with distress without self-harming". A campaign called The Butterfly Project has been encouraging people to take a pen and draw a butterfly on their skin when they feel an urge to self-harm.

While drawing is a technique that works for some people, there are also other techniqueswhich have been helpful for those experiencing feelings of self-harm, such as writing a diary or letter, listening to music, or phoning a friend.

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

"I know people who do similar things, and for anyone who hasn't yet found an alternative way of coping, I would definitely recommend trying art," says Hall.

To talk to someone about self-injury, text the Crisis Text Line at 741-741. If you are based in the UK, call MIND on 0300 123 3393 or text 86463.

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