Girl I watch may be cutting

[zivalover16]

I'm currently watching a brother and sister while one of their moms is at a meeting. A few min ago I noticed she had her pant leg up and was looking at 2 cuts. When I asked her what happened she said I don't know, I was at school and I don't know how I got them. Her little brother mentioned their cat gets angry but they weren't cat scratches.... I don't know what to do...I feel like if I say something I will be jumping the gun...I'm watching them again at their house Friday. Hopefully I'll be able talk to her a little then without mentioning cutting...I hope I'm just jumping to the cutting conclusion and am wrong...She's in middle school and was the quite one.... She has told me she acts stupid around her friends so they like her... Any suggestions on what I should do.

[DarkPhoenix]

A couple of thoughts. Have you ever seen anything like this on this child before? Has she ever mentioned it to you...any of her friends doing it, that type of thing? Did the cuts look like they were done deliberately?

You might get into a conversation with her about what does she do when she's sad or scared, and what do her friends do...that type of thing and see if you can get a better idea of how she copes.

If you're really concerned and the child wouldn't be harmed by you doing so, you probably should let the parents know. They need to be aware of what is going on so they can seek help for their child if need be, or at least be aware that there might be a problem and to keep their eyes open. You may be jumping the gun, but I'd rather jump the gun and everything be fine than not say anything and there turn out to be a problem.

[Cacoethes]

i thought this about my brother once. i noticed a couple of very deliberate looking cuts on his arm.

i eventually spoke to my mum and there was a totally weird explanation, but it wasnt self harm, even though it looked so much like it.

but as above, i would rather jump the gun about something like this, for the reasons mentioned by DarkPhoenix.

x

[zivalover16]

I ended up not watching them tonight because their other mom threw out her back so she can't sit in a chair for very long (a.k.a date cancelled) I might be watching them Tuesday though so we'll see what happens