Self-harm as a form of self-relief
Overwhelmed was Amanda (not her actual name). Her parents were too busy worrying about money. Her teacher of math had given her a tonne of homework. Additionally, due of an argument they had a few days prior, her best friend was refusing to talk to her. Amanda experienced fear and loneliness. She had an especially difficult algebra exam, and she felt like her world was crumbling. She sprinted into a girls’ restroom stall, rolled up her sleeve, and used her nails to make as deep of cuts as she could on her left arm. She drew blood, but she kept cutting and scratching. She believed that the only way she could handle all of the stress was to harm herself.
She stopped feeling so bleak after a few minutes. And over time, Amanda’s self-harming habit developed into a routine in which she would “release” her negative emotions by making cuts on her left arm with a razor or her nails whenever she was in an unpleasant or stressful circumstance. To save herself from queries from friends and family, she carefully covered up the scars.
Adolescents who experience intense emotions such as sadness, discomfort, anxiety, or confusion may act out by cutting, self-mutilating, or self-harming themselves. The majority of teenagers who hurt themselves do it as a result of stress, worry, or another unpleasant feeling.
In addition to cutting and scratching, youths may also bite, hit, pick at skin, or pull out hair as a coping mechanism for really negative emotions. Adolescents may cause themselves harm on a frequent basis, almost like it’s a ritual. Other times, when they require an instant release from pent-up anxiety, they might injure themselves.
Self-harm is a risky and hazardous behaviour that can leave mental and physical scars.
Anxiety and Self-Harm
Stress affects everyone. However, everyone experiences stress in a different way. Occasionally, it is characterised by jitteriness or anxiety. It may also involve extreme depressive, frustrated, or angry feelings.
These emotions are frequently (though not always) brought on by events that occur during the day (such receiving a poor grade or getting into a quarrel with a buddy). Additionally, they may be brought on by an upcoming event (like a huge test or a dancing recital). Additionally, stress manifests in varying degrees or levels.
Naturally, some people experience more stress than others. For instance, the feelings of two actors in a school play on their performances may differ greatly. While one may be ecstatic, the other may experience nausea and vertigo.
This variation could result from a person’s biological composition or from a traumatic event that happened to them when they were very young. Intense feelings of annoyance can also be linked to an individual’s upbringing, even if they can also be brought on by a specific event or by numerous negative things happening quickly. It’s possible that abusive parents don’t provide their kids with positive role models for managing stress.
Everyone handles stress in a different way, just as everyone feels stress in a different way. We refer to these techniques for reducing negative emotions as “coping mechanisms.”
There are constructive coping strategies such as:
1. Working Out
2. Using an instrument
3. Praying or meditating
4. Conversing with a reliable person
5. Writing in a Journal Additionally, there are undesirable coping strategies such as:
Alcohol abuse
Drug use
Cigarette smoking
Self-injury
Self-harm is a quick way for psychologists to release tension and other negative emotions. However, self-harming offers just a temporary solution, similar to drugs and alcohol, and subsequently heightens emotions of guilt, humiliation, or fear. In addition to the potential for bodily harm, self-harming behaviours have the potential to persist into adulthood. For this reason, it’s critical that teenagers acquire healthy, safe coping mechanisms so they can manage stress and anxiety in a responsible manner well into adulthood.
Self-harm is a quick way for psychologists to release tension and other negative emotions. However, self-harming offers just a temporary solution, similar to drugs and alcohol, and subsequently heightens emotions of guilt, humiliation, or fear. In addition to the potential for bodily harm, self-harming behaviours have the potential to persist into adulthood. For this reason, it’s critical that teenagers acquire healthy, safe coping mechanisms so they can manage stress and anxiety in a responsible manner well into adulthood.
Do Tattoos and Body Piercings Qualify as Self-Injury?
Not always.
Consider a boy, about 13 years old, who agrees to play “bloody knuckles,” a game in which players hit each other’s fists until they bleed. Then think of fifteen-year-old girls who get their eyebrows pierced at a mall booth and lie about their age. Or maybe you knew a young couple who had identical tattoos of their names on their bodies.
The enhanced mood that an adolescent feels after self-harming sets it apart from other types of bodily harm. Therefore, even if they could be harmful in and of themselves, the aforementioned examples are usually not acts of self-injury.
Does Self-Injury Indicate a Mental Disorder?
That’s possible. Self-harm is not only a means of gaining attention, and it is important to recognise that this behaviour is not manipulation. Friends and family should take self-injury seriously. Urge that person to visit a behavioural professional so they can learn more healthy coping mechanisms for their negative emotions.
Does Self-harm Relate to Suicide?
Self-harmers who do it to release negative emotions are not always suicidal. Self-harm is nearly the reverse. Those who physically damage themselves are not suicidal; rather, they are frantic to find a method to survive each day without feeling hopeless.
Is It Possible to Avoid Self-Injury?
It’s possible for someone to become incapable of quitting self-harm “cold turkey.” However, attending counselling or joining a support group will probably lessen the intensity and frequency of self-harm. Intensely negative emotions can make someone feel alone in the world, which is why it’s critical to have a social support network in place to prevent self-harm.
Effective therapeutic approaches are available for people who self-harm. Every person experiences self-injury in different ways and for different reasons. A clinical social worker, psychologist, or counsellor can customise a therapy plan for every individual.
Important: If you injure yourself, get help right away.
Tell someone who can assist you in finding a more effective coping mechanism for your negative emotions if you are experiencing thoughts of self-harm or have already done so. A parent, an elder sibling, a clergyman, a rabbi, a guidance counsellor, a medical professional, a psychologist, a social worker, or any responsible adult could be that person.
If you know someone who physically abuses their body, follow suit. Self-harm requires medical intervention right away.