Self harm comes under depression... However, not every person who has depression self harms.
But every person who Self Harm's has depression.
I don't really agree with that. Although I think that majority of self-harmers will be battling some degree of depression, I doubt it is every person. Self-harm can and is used as a pressure release for some people, when they are stressed, for example. Others see it as an effective coping mechanism for something else, not necessarily depression.
I agree with Claire. I have self harmed on and off for quite some time and it has only really been associated with depression for about the past few years. Before that, it served as a release from stress etc.
"Everything is possible through Christ, who gives me strength". Phillipians 4:13
I tried to read the first two articles.. but i my head feels jammed.. i cant make sense of what been said. but comments wrote after help. its not that im stupid.. to a degree ahaa but just this last while my head is jammed.. but id like to understand what is been said... in a nutshell.
Laughter is a direct route to the soul. It broadens your perspective, keeps you healthy, and makes an unbearable situation alot easier to deal with.
I don't really agree with that. Although I think that majority of self-harmers will be battling some degree of depression, I doubt it is every person. Self-harm can and is used as a pressure release for some people, when they are stressed, for example. Others see it as an effective coping mechanism for something else, not necessarily depression.
I actually agree with you :) I didn't look at it that may.. I just thought of it they hated themselves or something that happened and cut themselves because deep down they are depressed.
In that case Self Harm should completely be it's own "Mental Health" category thing.
“I Drink To Stay Warm, And To Kill Selected Memories...”
Just Don't Tell My Friend's
kayla brooke
Where as I agree Self harm can be completly unrelated to any other of the mental disorders. I think its hard to classify it. Because theres no symptoms of a self harmer, apart from obviously self harm, anyway I think because it can be caused by so many other things and It can have ties with depression, abuse , Eating disorders. Its impossible to identify this is what a self harmer is. If im making sense?
I also dont agree with it being a mental disorder. Its a coping mechanism. I dont do it cause theres somthing wrong, I dont believe that I have a disorder as such.
hope im making sense?
And you could have it all
My empire of dirt
But I would let you down
I would make you hurt
Where as I agree Self harm can be completly unrelated to any other of the mental disorders. I think its hard to classify it. Because theres no symptoms of a self harmer, apart from obviously self harm, anyway I think because it can be caused by so many other things and It can have ties with depression, abuse , Eating disorders. Its impossible to identify this is what a self harmer is. If im making sense?
I also dont agree with it being a mental disorder. Its a coping mechanism. I dont do it cause theres somthing wrong, I dont believe that I have a disorder as such.
hope im making sense?
Yes, you made sense.
There is also so much variation in what constitutes 'self-harm' that makes it impossible to classify people. What is the difference between someone who scratches, someone who burns, who gets tattoos (contentious), who drinks alcohol or other substances, who restricts food, etc. All of these people are 'self-harming' in one way or another.
It is a coping mechanism rather than an illness by itself, unless a person is addicted to it. That is the only time I can think of when the actual act of harming oneself becomes the root issue.
It is a coping mechanism rather than an illness by itself, unless a person is addicted to it. That is the only time I can think of when the actual act of harming oneself becomes the root issue.
Totally agree with this
After all this has passed, i still will remain
After i've cried my last, there'll be beauty from pain
^ See by that token I think that you could class eating disorders as a symptom rather than an illness in itself as very frequently they are a way to cope/get control of their surroundings or deal with deeper issues such as abuse etc. Hope that made some sense?
'Never forget what you are. The rest of the world will not. Wear it like armor, and it can never be used to hurt you.'
['There is only one thing we say to death. Not today'.']
'We are each our own devil, and we make this world our hell.’ – Oscar Wilde
‘It’s hard to dance with the devil on your back.’ Sydney Carter
Point is, I think, is that they are 'disordered' coping mechanisms - because one hasn't yet integrated the ability to use more interactional and communicative or healthily creative coping mechanisms consistently. Something is usually going on that is beyond their ability to cope -whether this be an abusive situation, a past or present trauma, or a difficult feeling or life stressor.
Understanding the self harm's 'language' is a doorway into changing responses to whatever's going on.
^ See by that token I think that you could class eating disorders as a symptom rather than an illness in itself as very frequently they are a way to cope/get control of their surroundings or deal with deeper issues such as abuse etc. Hope that made some sense?
Eating disorders can come under self-harm depending on who you speak to. EDs are tricky because there is such a range. I think there is a difference in those who are ill and those who are using compensatory (or whatever) behaviours as a coping mechanism.
I personally never got diagnosed as depressed or whatever, but i self harmed for years. If i have to say "i self harmed, its a mental disorder" in any job application, to be honest id just be embarrassed. I'm not proud that i self harmed. I dont want it to be a factor in my life. I havent done it in a LONNNNG long time and i dont even think abut it anymore, i only hide my major scars.
I dont want to be defined by my past. I DID self harm. But that doesnt mean i need to be cotton wooled.
Point is, I think, is that they are 'disordered' coping mechanisms - because one hasn't yet integrated the ability to use more interactional and communicative or healthily creative coping mechanisms consistently. Something is usually going on that is beyond their ability to cope -whether this be an abusive situation, a past or present trauma, or a difficult feeling or life stressor.
Understanding the self harm's 'language' is a doorway into changing responses to whatever's going on.
Uh, yeah.
Thats a really good outlook! "Understanding the self harm's 'language' is a doorway into changing responses to whatever's going on." That is a perfect quote.
It seems more like a symptom of other stuff to me.
But I am sure it can become an addiction
"Beer is living proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy."
~Benjamin Franklin Probably, no nation is rich enough to pay for both war and civilization. We must make our choice; we cannot have both.
~Abraham Flexner I guess when you turn off the main road, you have to be prepared to see some funny houses.
~Stephen King
This post irritated the hell out of me. They sound like they need to do some proper research into self harm before going and posting a whole article about it.
"done by children and teens, and most grow out of it, says Shaffer. Cutting drops off dramatically when the kids reach age 16 or 17"
Ok then, yeah, whatever what the hell? "grow out of it"? Like it's a normal phase "kids" go through as they grow up? Don't they understand how serious this problem can be for some people? I admit I know some people who have done it only briefly in their early teens and they have sort of left it behind as they've gotten older. But for others it's a behaviour which once formed can linger for years and years if not throughout a persons entire life.
the thing is though, a lot of people do grow out of it & there is nothing wrong with that at all.
many of the people i knew face to face who self harmed have stopped since becoming legal adults, & i don't think many of them made a conscious decision to do it either, it just dropped away & they didn't feel the need any more.
how many young people join this site & then leave as they 'grow out of it'? or maybe young people that may have been the type to 'grow out of it' join this site but then don't stop because this site helps normalise the behaviour?
self harm is quite common but mainly for the youth of today, in a lot of inpatient wards the older adults don't & never have self harmed, i've known of wards where there have been 25 patients, 3 who are between 18-21 who do/have self harmed, maybe 1 or 2 older who have self harmed & the majority don't. (this is if you count self harm as physical wounds to the body, not eating disorders, i'm separating the two purely for this point).
despite having read the various arguments & studies on self harm being addictive i struggle to believe it, although i am more likely to believe it being a psychological addiction rather than a physical addiction (such as with cannabis), i'm contradicting myself.
the thing that annoys me with this latest article is that self harm is not synonymous with mental illness, many young people (& adults) will/may hurt themselves for various reasons, from attention to stress relief. after long discussions with a certain psychiatrist he expressed that patients who didn't self harm were better to work with, i lose his point really because of a clouded memory, but after hearing for other experiences of once they didn't self harm receiving more/better help (or maybe it was the mindset?)
this seems like a step backwards for the majority, for the minority it may help.
the thing is though, i've always believed that self harm is not the problem, & that working with someone to stop the self harm is similar to wrapping a broken present (thats a crap analogy), but self harm seems to be a reaction to something, be it a need for attention or stress, so surely it would be better to tackle that than the self harming behaviour, or course with the removal of the action the self harming reaction may stop, then it would be about tackling the self harming behavour as an addiction rather than a problem in itself, but i suppose that would be mainly aimed at how they were looking at treating people stickied with this 'disorder'.
the thing is though, i've always believed that self harm is not the problem, & that working with someone to stop the self harm is similar to wrapping a broken present (thats a crap analogy), but self harm seems to be a reaction to something, be it a need for attention or stress, so surely it would be better to tackle that than the self harming behaviour, or course with the removal of the action the self harming reaction may stop, then it would be about tackling the self harming behavour as an addiction rather than a problem in itself, but i suppose that would be mainly aimed at how they were looking at treating people stickied with this 'disorder'.
I totally agree.
I'm not sure it should be a mental disorder on its own, theres just far too many reasons people cut, that having to do with being mentally ill.
Also, I started self harming when I was 16, and know many people my age that still continue to do it, which I think maybe could show how possibly self harm in adults could possibly be more down to mental problems than self harm in children and young teenagers - not that grouping everyone into that I'm just saying its a theory.
what the hell? "grow out of it"? Like it's a normal phase "kids" go through as they grow up? Don't they understand how serious this problem can be for some people? I admit I know some people who have done it only briefly in their early teens and they have sort of left it behind as they've gotten older. But for others it's a behaviour which once formed can linger for years and years if not throughout a persons entire life.
