Main Points:

Types of self harm:

• Cutting or burning one's skin

• Punching or hitting yourself

• poisoning yourself with tablets or toxic chemicals

• misusing alcohol or drugs

• deliberately starving yourself or binge eating

• exercising to much

This thread will mostly focus on Cutting although I encourage you to learn more about all of them

Biggest Question:

Why did you start cutting?

I first cut when I was like 8 or 9. I was frustrated and had heard about it from TV and pop culture. I thought it would be worth trying.

Recently my closest friend relapsed back into self harm, so I wanted to write this info thread to not only tell why someone might do it but to also get a users perspective!

Self harm comes in may forms, cutting or burning one's skin, punching or hitting yourself, poisoning yourself with tablets or toxic chemicals, misusing alcohol or drugs, deliberately starving yourself or binge eating, or exercising to much. Oxford defines it as:

"Deliberate injury to oneself, typically as a manifestation of a mental condition."

Why would someone Self Harm? In most cases, people who self-harm do it to help them cope with overwhelming emotional pain. This could be caused by social problems, trauma or psychological reasons.

Social Problems:

• Being bullied

• Having problems at work or school

• Having difficult relationships with friends or family

• Coping with expectations

Trauma:

• Physical or sexual abuse

• Death of a close family member or friend

• Having a miscarriage

Psychological causes:

• Dissociating - losing touch with who they are and with their surroundings

• Having repeated thoughts or voices telling them to self-harm

• Borderline personality disorder (BPD)

about 17% of all people will self harm in their lifetime!

45% of people Self Harming are using cutting.

The average age of onset for self-injury is 13!

Q/A:

Why did you start cutting?

I first cut when I was like 8 or 9. I was frustrated and had heard about it from TV and pop culture. I thought it would be worth trying.

Why did you continue to cut?

I liked it and felt that it helped me vent my frustration and depression as I wasn't being medicated at the time. Also at my height of cutting I was caught smoking and doing other drugs and my parents decided to outpatient rehab. I couldn't see any of my friends or use so the only thing I felt I could do was cut.

How destructive of a habit do you believe it to be in comparison to other ones such as Porn, Nicotine, Other drugs, etc.?

Cutting is really hard to stop once you get used to it. It can obviously get you killed if you cut too deep or something bad but it isn't as bad as something like heroin because hard drugs effect everyone in your life while cutting is easy to hide and don't do any damage to other people.

When my parents first found out I was cutting I didn't understand why it was a bid deal because I had been doing it for so long. I never really understood how much it hurts people around you until I found out my girlfriend was doing it.

Once we talked about it we decided to stop together.

This interview was with: @Sadistac (Man in the first video)

Comment if you have any more questions you would like answered.

If you know someone who is struggling with self harm or you are Please reach out!

A thread was posted today on how to treat SH and I recommend you read it if you are struggling!

https://watchpeopledie.tv/h/social/post/145635/self-harm-aid-and-harm-reduction

Sources:

https://www2.hse.ie/conditions/self-harm/

https://www.therecoveryvillage.com/mental-health/self-harm/self-harm-statistics/

Lil Self Harm Collection:

Person hits an artery when cutting, bro squirts everywhere

Person rubs salt and lemon on self harm cuts

Sliced neck, most likely an attempted suicide

Man tries to pull out nerve endings

man cut off his penis

Indian Man cuts off his finger (light work for him)

This is my first attempt at an effort post lmk any changes to make it read better or such