What is Self Harm?
The phrase ‘self-harm’ is used to describe a big range of behaviors. Self-harm is often understood to be a physical response to an emotional pain of some kind, and can be emotionally addictive. Some of the things people do are quite well known, such as cutting, burning or pinching, but there are quite a lot ways to hurt yourself, including abusing drugs and alcohol or having an eating disorder. Sometimes, it’s more important to focus on how someone is feeling rather than what they do to themselves. Quite often, people find that more helpful than to stop self harm completely.
Everyone has accidents from time to time resulting in cuts and some bruises - but it's the injuries that are caused deliberately that are considered to be self-harm. Self-harm often happens during times of anger, distress, fear, worry, depression or low self-esteem in order to manage or control negative feelings. Self-harm can also be used as a form of self-punishment for something someone has done, thinks they have done, are told by someone else that they have done, or that they have allowed to be done to themselves.
Selfharm UK often receives emails from people asking if what they are doing to themselves can be classified as self-harm. The bottom line is that anything that causes you harm – even slight harm – which in some small way makes you feel better emotionally, can fall under the umbrella of self-harm. The important thing isn’t to focus too much on the labeling, but to recognize when help is needed and find some support as soon as possible.
Sometimes, self-harm is referred to as self-injury or SI. It doesn’t matter which term you use, providing you feel you are being heard and understood correctly.
Who Is At Risk Of Self Harm?
Everyone can be at risk of Self Harming, It is not a specific gender or age. Self-harm affects many people of all ages and from all walks of life – regardless of where someone is from, what their social or cultural background might be, or how well they perform at school. You are not necessarily more likely to have a problem with self-harm if you come from a more deprived part of town; it doesn’t matter if your parents are together or divorced, if you come from a single parent family or if your parents are employed or not. Young people growing up in care are not more or less likely to self-harm than teenagers who live with their families. It really can, and does, affect anyone.
It is thought that around 13% of young people aged 11-16 will self-harm at some point, 3 teenagers an hour in the UK will have self harmed, while over 3 million Americans have self harmed. Research does suggest that children exposed to others’ self-harm may be more likely to begin harming themselves, so it’s important that siblings and friends receive support to understand self-harm as much as the person affected.
The important fact to remember is that you will not be alone in this; you will not be the only one struggling, nor will you be the only person with a friend, brother, sister, child or pupil who self-harms. There may be lots of people in the same situation as you, so don’t ever feel alone. Ever.
Some people find the process of self-harm to be very addictive; the act of harming causes the body to produce endorphins, which can produce a feeling similar to an adrenaline rush. The rush lessens as time goes on so the acts of self-harm get bigger and more damaging in order to achieve the same sensation. It’s the same response people have to drug taking – more is needed to get the same ‘hit’. It's a very dangerous cycle to fall into.
Some people don’t find harming addictive in a physical sense but may become dependent on it emotionally. Harming may hold back unwanted feelings, so it may become a habit and part of a daily routine to reduce the risk of those feelings popping up in the first place – prevention rather than cure. Giving up harming means these feelings may surface, and that can be a frightening prospect. This is why it is important for people to have the chance to talk about how they feel, and to learn new ways of coping.
Please see here about contacting me for more information.
The phrase ‘self-harm’ is used to describe a big range of behaviors. Self-harm is often understood to be a physical response to an emotional pain of some kind, and can be emotionally addictive. Some of the things people do are quite well known, such as cutting, burning or pinching, but there are quite a lot ways to hurt yourself, including abusing drugs and alcohol or having an eating disorder. Sometimes, it’s more important to focus on how someone is feeling rather than what they do to themselves. Quite often, people find that more helpful than to stop self harm completely.
Everyone has accidents from time to time resulting in cuts and some bruises - but it's the injuries that are caused deliberately that are considered to be self-harm. Self-harm often happens during times of anger, distress, fear, worry, depression or low self-esteem in order to manage or control negative feelings. Self-harm can also be used as a form of self-punishment for something someone has done, thinks they have done, are told by someone else that they have done, or that they have allowed to be done to themselves.
Selfharm UK often receives emails from people asking if what they are doing to themselves can be classified as self-harm. The bottom line is that anything that causes you harm – even slight harm – which in some small way makes you feel better emotionally, can fall under the umbrella of self-harm. The important thing isn’t to focus too much on the labeling, but to recognize when help is needed and find some support as soon as possible.
Sometimes, self-harm is referred to as self-injury or SI. It doesn’t matter which term you use, providing you feel you are being heard and understood correctly.
Who Is At Risk Of Self Harm?
Everyone can be at risk of Self Harming, It is not a specific gender or age. Self-harm affects many people of all ages and from all walks of life – regardless of where someone is from, what their social or cultural background might be, or how well they perform at school. You are not necessarily more likely to have a problem with self-harm if you come from a more deprived part of town; it doesn’t matter if your parents are together or divorced, if you come from a single parent family or if your parents are employed or not. Young people growing up in care are not more or less likely to self-harm than teenagers who live with their families. It really can, and does, affect anyone.
It is thought that around 13% of young people aged 11-16 will self-harm at some point, 3 teenagers an hour in the UK will have self harmed, while over 3 million Americans have self harmed. Research does suggest that children exposed to others’ self-harm may be more likely to begin harming themselves, so it’s important that siblings and friends receive support to understand self-harm as much as the person affected.
The important fact to remember is that you will not be alone in this; you will not be the only one struggling, nor will you be the only person with a friend, brother, sister, child or pupil who self-harms. There may be lots of people in the same situation as you, so don’t ever feel alone. Ever.
Some people find the process of self-harm to be very addictive; the act of harming causes the body to produce endorphins, which can produce a feeling similar to an adrenaline rush. The rush lessens as time goes on so the acts of self-harm get bigger and more damaging in order to achieve the same sensation. It’s the same response people have to drug taking – more is needed to get the same ‘hit’. It's a very dangerous cycle to fall into.
Some people don’t find harming addictive in a physical sense but may become dependent on it emotionally. Harming may hold back unwanted feelings, so it may become a habit and part of a daily routine to reduce the risk of those feelings popping up in the first place – prevention rather than cure. Giving up harming means these feelings may surface, and that can be a frightening prospect. This is why it is important for people to have the chance to talk about how they feel, and to learn new ways of coping.
Please see here about contacting me for more information.
