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Welcome,
My name is Sara, I'm 16 years old, and I have been struggling with self injury for nearly five years. My site will contain information on self injury, as well as writing, poems, and personal stories from other SIer's, as well as myself. I hope you find my site helpful, as well as insightful.
You may find it hard to beleive that anyone would purposely injure him or herself. Or you might think that self-injury isn't a serious issue. However, it is a growing problem. Experts believe that close to 2 million people in the United States may suffer from it. But because the research is new and the behavior is underreported, the numbers may be much higher.
Self-injury encompasses many behaviors, even some that don't leave visible scars on the body. Some of the most common forms of self-injurious behaviors includ cutting, hitting, burning, bone breaking, reinfecting wounds, and biting and digging.
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Methods of Injuring
CUTTING- Research has shown that cutting is the most common form of self-injury. For many, the sight of blood is not only exciting, but comforting as well. Watching the blood flow is like watching all the pain go away. People who cut themselves usually choose places on the body that aren't going to be obvious to others: Usually arms and legs, that can be covered up afterward. Some teens cut and scratch only their upper arms because even short sleeves will cover this part of the body. Some slash their chests because most garments will cover this area as well. Those who slash their wrists, which are less easily covered, may do so to communicate their pain to others or simply because their acting on impulse.
HITTING- Most people who engage in headbanging and self-hitting don't do it where others can see them. Often, they're the ones who come to school with reddened faces or recent bruising all over their arms. As a rule, they'll do their hitting and slapping in private and then wear long sleeves and other garments to hide the bruises. Some people become so used to this coping mechanism that they forget where they are, and fall back into their pattern even in public.
BURNING- Burning oneself, whether with cigarettes, lighters, or heated instruments, is a form of self-injury. Some people take scalding hot showers or use handheld hairdryers or curling irons to burn their skin.
BONE BREAKING- Some teens engage in self-injury by actually smashing their arms against a wall or hard object in order to shatter their bones. They don't feel relief until they've cracked the bone. Other teens will use heavy objects to hit their legs or feet so they can break the bones.
REINFECTING WOUNDS- Some people keep reinfecting their wounds. Once a sore starts to heal, they open it again, exposing it to germs.
Biting and Digging- Digging into to skin, picking old scabs until they bleed, and biting oneself are all forms of self-injury behavior.
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What is not Self-Injurious Behavior
TATTOOING AND BRANDING- Although tattooing and branding actually damage body tissue, they are not considered self-injury. Tattooing and branding are usually done to a person by someone else with the express purpose of adorning one's body. Secondly, someone doesn't usually get a tattoo or brand to combat feelings too intense to deal with otherwise. Self-injurers canno't delay their need to self-injure, and tattooing and branding are generally not behaviors that can be undertaken at a moments notice.
BODY PIERCING- Piercing different body parts may seem more like self-injury than tattooing does, however, while some body piercings may seem excessive or inappropriate, people don't engage in it for the same reasons that self-injurers hurt themselves.
TENSION-REDUCERS- Anxiety is hard to handle, so some people distract themselves by doing seemingly self-destructive things like biting their fingernails or pulling their hair out. Biting nails isn't considered self-injury unless it is so severe that you actually need medical help. Hair-pulling can sometimes be a form of self-injury, but more often than not, it is just a compulsive, nervous habit.
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