What is Self-Injury?
Self-injury (SI) is also known as self-harm.
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) definiton of self harm is “Intentional self-poisoning or injury, irrespective of the apparent purpose of the act.”
It can include burning, asphyxiation, bruising, swallowing objects, biting/tearing at skin along with the more recognizable forms of cutting and poisoning.
It has also historically been wrongly termed ‘parasuicide’. Although those who self-injure are at a higher risk of committing suicide, self-injury is arguably more of a coping mechanism to deal with intense emotional pain that the injurer may feel would be otherwise impossible to manage.
There are many reasons why a person self-injures, for example low self-esteem, anger, self-hatred, anxiety, guilt, after a traumatic life event such as the death of a friend/relative, or as a way to deal with feelings of powerlessness.
Some people drink alcohol to excess, smoke, over-work, gamble or take other risks which are seen as more ‘socially acceptable’ options for dealing with problems. These may in fact be just as or even more dangerous than self-injury but do not carry the same stigma.
This often makes it extremely difficult for self-injurers to ask for help with whatever problems or issues that they have. When they do ask for help, many receive condemnation and even derisive comments and attitudes from the medical profession, which make it impossible for them to discuss and try to resolve their problems.
Often the emphasis is put on stopping the self-injuring behaviour rather than addressing the issues that led to it in the first place.
Statistics
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (2002):
- SI results in about 150,000 attendances at accident and emergency departments each year.
- It is one of the top five causes of acute medical admission.
- Rates of SI in the UK are of some of the highest in Europe.
- Most common form of SI is self-poisoning with prescription medication.