Self-harm/Self-injury

 

The National Association for Mental Illness (NAMI) defines self-harm or self-injury as “hurting yourself on purpose”.  Mental health professionals sometimes refer to self-harm as non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), which may help to distinguish some self-harm behaviors from actions that involve an intent to end one’s life.

 

Reasons some people may engage in self-harm behavior

For some, self-injury may provide a temporary sense of relief. The JED Foundation reports that “self-injury usually develops as an attempt to cope with emotional distress, and some people [self-harm] when they feel overwhelming sadness, anxiety or emotional numbness. This behavior is also sometimes used as a form of self-punishment, and a way to outwardly express inner pain.”

Self-harm may emerge from a normal desire to:

• feel better,
• regulate or cope with difficult or painful emotions, and
• experience a greater sense of agency.

The organization To Write Love on Her Arms  notes that “research shows that, often, self-injury is used as a maladaptive coping mechanism to deal with intense emotions.” The self-harm behavior may be a physical reflection of what the person wishes to experience emotionally – namely, to experience and heal from pain.

 

Therapy and self-help resources may help persons who self-injure to:

• Identify internal and external factors that activate distress and contribute to self-harm behavior.
• Strengthen and practice a broader range of coping skills for experiencing and regulating difficult emotions and to interrupt patterns of negative thinking.
• Choose specific coping strategies that reliably help to manage different sources or types of distress.

Coping skills to manage or reduce distress:

• Mindfulness techniques
• Relaxation and stress management techniques
• Self-care for mental health – Half of Us
• Non-competitive exercise / gentle physical fitness
• Expressive activities that are soothing or playful – coloring, painting, using clay
• Listen to or play music that is calming, grounding
• Distraction
• Replacement behaviors that do not cause physical harm
• Journaling/ writing to express emotion, to practice more positive self-talk, and to identify a coping skill to try next

Self-help resources

Text-based support:

• Self-Harm Crisis Text Line

Apps:

• Calm Harm (free)
• Lake coloring book for iOS (free daily image)
• Pigment coloring for Android and iOS
• Check out the CC Mindfulness and Relaxation resource pages for even more apps

Websites:

• The Cornell Research Program on Self-injury Resources and Recovery (CRPSIRR) website has an abundance of information pertaining to resources and recovery for people who self-injure and for the people who care about them.
• NAMI provides compassionate, nonjudgmental guidance for expressing care and support with people who have engaged in self-harm.
• Self-injury Outreach and Support (SiOS)
• To Write Love on Her Arms (TWLOHA) “is a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury, and suicide”
• Validate – Appreciate – Refer is a great resource from Active Minds about listening and responding with care when someone in distress chooses to confide in you.

Videos:

• Practicing Emotional First Aid (TedTalk)

 

Medical attention

“Unlike suicide attempts, self-harming behaviors are not driven by a desire to end one’s life. However, some self-injurious behaviors may be life-threatening” (JED Foundation). Wounds from self-injury may be at risk for infection.  Resources are available on-campus and off-campus.

 

On-campus medical services:

• Health Services
• Campus Safety: (518) 580-5566

Off-campus medical services:

• Saratoga Hospital Urgent Care at Wilton Medical Arts
• Saratoga Hospital Emergency Center

 

Therapy

The Counseling Center is available to provide support and assistance for acute concerns related to self-injury, or for consultation about the self-injury of a friend. Those who are interested in receiving ongoing therapy for these concerns can access our local referral database, or can make a referral consultation appointment with a Counseling Center clinician so we can help you identify the most appropriate treatment options.

 

Citations:

The content and resources on this webpage were adapted from and/or include links to professional mental health websites (CRPSIRR), conference materials (Barent Walsh, Ph.D.), online resources designed for professionals and the public (NAMI; Active Minds; TWLOHA; JED Foundation), and various Skidmore College and Saratoga-area resources.