What Is Self Harm?

-*What is self-harm?*-

-What is self-harm?-


Self-harm is when someone deliberately hurts or injures themselves. This can take a number of forms including:
• cutting or burning - the most common forms of self-harm
• taking overdoses of tablets or medicines
• punching themselves
• throwing their bodies against something
• pulling out their hair or eyelashes
• scratching, picking or tearing at their skin causing sores and scarring
• inhaling or sniffing harmful substances
• swallowing things that are not edible
• inserting objects into their bodies
Some young people self-harm on a regular basis while others do it just once or a few times. For some people it is part of coping with a specific problem and they stop once the problem is resolved. Other people self-harm for years whenever certain kinds of pressures or feelings arise.
A few people who self-harm may go on to commit suicide - generally this is not what they intend to do. In fact, self-harm can be seen as the opposite of suicide as it is often a way of coping with life rather than of giving up on it.
Self-harm is often also referred to by other names such as deliberate self-harm, attempted suicide, para-suicide, self-mutilation and self-injury. Talking or reading about self-harm can sometimes become confusing because researchers and health professionals often use these terms to mean different things. A research article or report will usually define exactly how it is using any specialised terms.



                  -How common is self-harm?-

Self-harm is more common than people realise. It's impossible to say exactly how many young people self-harm because:

•  Many young people hurt themselves secretly before finding the courage to tell someone.
•  Many of them never ask for counselling or medical help.
•  There is no standard definition of self-harm used in research.
•  There are no national statistics on self-harm currently available.

However, the best evidence we have suggests:

•  Self-harm is most common in children over the age of 11 and increases in frequency with age. It is uncommon in very young children although there is evidence of children as young as five trying to harm themselves.

•  Self-harm is more common amongst girls and young women than amongst boys and young men. Studies indicate that, amongst young people over 13 years of age, approximately three times as many females as males harm themselves.

•  A study in Oxford found that approximately 300 per 100,000 males aged between 15 and 24 years, and 700 per 100,000 females of the same age, were admitted to hospital following an episode of self-harm during the year 2000.

•  Community based studies report higher rates of self-harm than hospital based studies.
•  A national survey of children and adolescents carried out in the community found that 5 per cent of boys and 8 per cent of girls aged 13-15 said that they had, at some time, tried to harm, hurt or kill themselves.
•  In the same national survey, rates of self-harm reported by parents were much lower than the rates of self-harm reported by children. This suggests that many parents are unaware that their children are self-harming.
•  A study carried out in schools in 2002 found that 11 per cent of girls and 3 per cent of boys aged 15 and 16 said they had harmed themselves in the previous year.



              -Why asking for help can be difficult-

There are many reasons why young people may find it difficult to ask for help:

•  Not knowing whom to ask.
•  Not knowing that confidential help is available.
•  Feeling too ashamed or bad about themselves.
•  Being worried that who they tell will be shocked or angry with them.
•  Being frightened of being labelled mad, suicidal or attention seeking.
•  Bad or negative experiences in the past may make it difficult for them to trust people.
•  If they have been abused or neglected, they may feel they are better off, dealing with things on their own.
•  Feeling worried they may be forced into treatment they do not want.



              -Understanding people who self-harm-

It may be difficult to understand why someone would deliberately harm himself or herself but it is important to remember that many people do things that are harmful from time to time. Some people smoke, drink too much, or overeat. While these things may be thought to be more socially acceptable than self-harm, they can also be harmful ways of dealing with stress and the pressures of everyday life.

People who self-harm are experiencing extreme distress. They are not usually attention seeking or mentally ill. They are in a situation where they have lost control over what is happening to them and have no other means of expressing their feelings or asking for help.

They need compassion, support and understanding.


Aran Cockburn