Nidhi Dahiya
Article Contents
Self-Harming is Not a Solution
Have you ever felt the urge to cut yourself? And what exactly led you to harm yourself?
I mean, what is so frustrating that made you angry and you ended up in emotional turmoil.
Was this the merely way for you to deal with your problems?
People go through different situations, have unexpected experiences, loneliness, confusion of their unresolved feelings.
They cut themselves, either they want to ignore something which is odious and dreadful or they felt like being controlled by someone (because they fear them or they fear to hurt their feelings).
They hurt themselves to lessen the pressure but they don’t know this relief is transitory and it leads to more problematic situations.
Usually, they try to hide the fact of self-punishment but cuts on forearms are easily noticeable.
They also scratch their skin, hit their head on walls, pulling their hair and burn themselves with lighter, candle, cigarettes etc.
People who think that self-harming would solve your problems then it won’t. Share your feelings with family, friends or anyone who you trust. This can bring you some relief but only you can heal yourself.
How one ends up:
As I said earlier, the relief self-harming is merely for a short period of time and immediately it leads to feelings of shame and guilt which keeps the person away from their surroundings.
But a person can’t keep it a secret as it’s lonely and difficult.
Also, they think that no one would understand. It’s a total burdensome for them as keeping secrets from their loved ones affects their relationships.
In guilt, they hurt themselves very badly. If the person doesn’t know how to deal with emotional turmoil, it increases the risk of severe depression, suicidal thoughts, drug and alcohol addiction. With time it becomes a compulsive behaviour which seems impossible to stop for that person.
Warning signs
Youngsters are more involved in self-harming. These are some signs:
Cuts, burns, or bruises on the wrists, arms or thighs.
Bloodstains
Razors, knives, needles or sharp instrument in the person’s belongings.
Always tried to cover up.
Stay alone most of the time.
Isolation and irritability.
If you discover someone, then try to help them:-
First off, they have to be expressive. They have to confide in you. If they do, then listen to them carefully.
Don’t be mad over them. Keep yourself calm and make them realize that cutting themselves won’t solve their problems.
Try to be understanding and let them know that you are there for them. If you can’t help, then take help from someone who is professional.
Find out their self-harm triggers.
Emotional awareness plays an important role because if they know what are they feeling and why are they feeling then it won’t be a problem.
Try to keep them distracted in activities like painting, music, exercises.
Treatment for self-harm
Trained professional can help the person to overcome self-harming behaviour, so talking to a therapist can be a better choice.
It will help the person to develop new coping strategies to stop self-harming. Also, the therapist will help to get to the root cause of why the person hurt himself.
Self-harm exists in real life. It’s an external expression of inner pain that often starts in early life. Most of the time there is a connection between self-harm and childhood trauma. For some people, it’s a way of coping with their feelings related to past experiences.
Find the Right therapist for yourself
It may take some time. It’s very crucial for you to choose a trained professional, someone who have already handled both trauma and self-injury. Having good rapport is also important. Trust the vibes you get from the therapist. He should be open-minded and who is always willing to help you at your own pace.
Conclusion
Self-harming is not a solution and it won’t save you from the problems that forced you to hurt yourself. It doesn’t matter how lonely, hopeless, worthless, or trapped you feel right now but there are always coping strategies to overcome the issues.
It is so important that we understand about the consequences of self harm.
Yezz, it’s really important and thank you for your support.
this is a very important subject. well written!!
Thank you so much ✌️
I am falling in love with your articles!
Thank you so much for your appreciation ✌️
Good
Thank you ✌️
Wow!
Thanks buddy
Well written one. Self harm is dangerous and it is not usually a topic that is discussed. Very insightful one.
Thank you so much kritika
Not a lot of people talk about self harm because it is either too controversial or ‘I deal with that too so I can’t talk others out of it’ kind of situation. It is so bold of you to put out this topic and it is so well written too! There is this thing called the butterfly project where you are supposed to paint beautiful butterflies on the places you’d normally hurt yourself so that they remind you of the beauty that you behold, and hence prevent you from self harm. Has worked for me too. And Great job on this piece!
Thank you so much@Sruti. I’m glad you liked it.
thanks for writing …this is so wonderful article..loved it 🙂
very very informative … keep writing:)
Thank you for writing about such an important issue. It is extremely important that we support anyone who is going through such tough times. The only thing I would recommend is to maybe add more information about techniques that could help curb the urge to self harm. But yes, good article.