Third, tell someone that you want help dealing with your troubles and the cutting. If the person you ask doesn't help you get the assistance you need, ask someone else. Sometimes adults try to downplay the problems teens have or think they're just a phase. If you feel like this is happening to you, keep telling someone until you get the help you want. Finally, speak with a mental health professional. These professionals are trained to help teens cope with pain and distress and can help sort through feelings.
They can also show you better ways to deal with these stresses. If you need help finding a mental health professional, start with your school counselor or social worker or family doctor. Browsers that can not handle javascript will not be able to access some features of this site. Cutting for her was a ritual that was reinforced by her struggle with obsessive compulsive disorder.
Another prevalent form of self-harm is branding or burning. Rubbing an eraser against the skin can also cause a friction burn. This form of self-harm is often seen in the adolescent population. When a cutter does not have a sharp object they may use a fingernail. Many individuals that struggle with self-harm have experienced some sort of trauma in their past. This could include childhood sexual, emotional or physical abuse, real or perceived abandonment or neglect by a caregiver, death or divorce.
As mentioned above, self-harm is a coping strategy to deal with emotional pain. Individuals that self-harm dissociate from the emotional pain by feeling physical pain. Others who self-harm feel that when they self-harm, they have a sense of control over their emotions. Some believe they deserve to be punished for past issues; others use self-harm to re-enact abuse.
She felt like she needed to release the poison by cutting herself. She had experienced sexual trauma. Although it is difficult to say what makes one person self-harm and another not, there tend to be individuals who are at higher risk for developing self-harm behaviors. These include:. Most people who self-harm start at around age Some continue to self-harm into their twenties.
While self-harm behavior worked as a coping strategy in their teens, some individuals find that it is not as helpful or as socially acceptable when they get older. If the individual does not resolve the issues behind the self-harm behavior, then self-harm behavior may morph into other addictive behaviors, such as drugs, alcohol, and promiscuity.
I used to wonder why you cared so much, but now I am just thankful. The best treatment for self-harm behaviors is helping the individual express and talk about their pain. As they talk about their pain, they are able to gain perspective and understanding of it. Some individuals have difficulty expressing themselves verbally. These people can release their pain through writing, drawing, painting, and other forms of expression.
The important thing is for them to release their pain in a healthy way. Since self-harm behavior can be similar to an addiction, many individuals have intense urges to return to self-harm even as they try to recover. People who self-harm may also be at a higher risk of suicide, and the risk factors for both are very similar.
Many people with both suicidal thoughts and a history of self-harm report unbearable and unmanageable emotions. Cutting is not a choice but a sign of extreme distress. Treatment can help, while shame, anger, and judgment will not.
Cutting is a type of self-harm. Although it can be a challenging habit to break, there are many ways to prevent yourself or others from cutting. Suicide is preventable with the right treatment and support. Learn about the warning signs and risk factors for suicide in this article.
We also…. In this article, learn about why some people consider suicide. It also covers what to do if you or a loved one experiences these thoughts. Although borderline personality disorder and bipolar disorder share some similar symptoms, they are different conditions. We take a look at agitated depression, a low mood involving uneasiness and anxiety. Included in this article is detail on diagnosis and stress….
Why do people cut themselves? Medically reviewed by Timothy J. Legg, Ph. Injuring yourself on purpose by making scratches or cuts on your body with a sharp object — enough to break the skin and make it bleed — is called cutting. Cutting is a type of self-injury , or SI. People who cut often start cutting in their young teens. Some continue to cut into adulthood. People may cut themselves on their wrists, arms, legs, or bellies. Some people self-injure by burning their skin with the end of a cigarette or lighted match.
When cuts or burns heal, they often leave scars or marks. People who injure themselves usually hide the cuts and marks and sometimes no one else knows. It can be hard to understand why people cut themselves on purpose. Cutting is a way some people try to cope with the pain of strong emotions, intense pressure , or upsetting relationship problems.
They may be dealing with feelings that seem too difficult to bear or bad situations they think can't change. Some people cut because they feel desperate for relief from bad feelings. People who cut may not know better ways to get relief from emotional pain or pressure. Some people cut to express strong feelings of rage, sorrow, rejection, desperation, longing, or emptiness. There are other ways to cope with difficulties, even big problems and terrible emotional pain.
The help of a mental health professional might be needed for major life troubles or overwhelming emotions. For other tough situations or strong emotions, it can help put things in perspective to talk problems over with parents, other adults, or friends. Getting plenty of exercise also can help put problems in perspective and help balance emotions. But people who cut may not have developed ways to cope. Or their coping skills may be overpowered by emotions that are too intense.
When emotions don't get expressed in a healthy way, tension can build up — sometimes to a point where it seems almost unbearable. Cutting may be an attempt to relieve that extreme tension. For some, it seems like a way of feeling in control.
The urge to cut might be triggered by strong feelings the person can't express — such as anger, hurt, shame, frustration, or alienation. People who cut sometimes say they feel they don't fit in or that no one understands them. A person might cut because of losing someone close or to escape a sense of emptiness. Cutting might seem like the only way to find relief or express personal pain over relationships or rejection. People who cut or self-injure sometimes have other mental health problems that contribute to their emotional tension.
Cutting is sometimes but not always associated with depression, bipolar disorder , eating disorders, obsessive thinking, or compulsive behaviors. It can also be a sign of mental health problems that cause people to have trouble controlling their impulses or to take unnecessary risks. Some people who cut themselves have problems with drug or alcohol abuse.
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