Self Harm In Health And Social Care

“I feel relieved and less anxious after I cut. The emotional pain slowly slips away into the physical pain.” (Brody 2008). Picture yourself cooking in your kitchen, and as you grab the knife it slips and slices your wrist. You immediately feel the sharp pain followed by the tingle burning sensation of pine needles and throbbing. This is the sensation to those who self-harm themselves yearn to feel, they purposely harm themselves to feel a release. By hurting oneself this is not for attention. Self-harm is an addiction and a disease that has multiple causes; self-harm is a developing problem that is needed to be discussed. Self-harm can be stated in various terms such as self-injury, self-mutilation (SM), cutting, and Non-Suicidal Self-Injury

As the time goes by more and more psycologist and sociologists are concerned about the inclination of children and teenagers to harm themeselves. Self-harm which is the intentional self-poisoning or self-injury, with or without suicidal intent) in children and adolescents has been identified as a major problem in several countries. Much recent information on self-harm in young people has been based on surveys, usually in schools [3,4]. This has highlighted the extent of the problem at the community level. Most individuals who gain access to clinical care, however, have presented to hospital following-harm. However, only a minority of individuals who self-harm in the community present to hospital or any health facility .

People that harm themselves may feel very lonely or disconnected and need a shoulder to cry on or someone to listen. Another misconception is that those who self-harm are suicidal. Although this can be the case and prolonged self-harm can increase a person’s risk for suicide and suicidal thoughts, most of the time self-harm is used as a way of coping. Some believe that only teenagers self-harm but this habit can continue into adulthood as well. Self-harm has many addictive qualities due to the fact that every time you harm yourself your body releases endorphins. Telling someone to stop hurting him or herself is like telling a person who drinks coffee every day to just stop. Chances are they

The most common form of self-harm is skin-cutting but self-harm also covers a wide range of behaviors including, but not limited to, burning, scratching, banging or hitting body parts, interfering with wound healing hair-pulling and the ingestion of substances or objects.The desire to self-harm is listed in the DSM-IV-TR as a symptom of borderline personality disorder. However, patients with other diagnoses may also self-harm, including those with depression, anxiety disorders, substance abuse, eating disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, schizophrenia, and severe personality disorders.Self-harm is also apparent in high-functioning individuals who have no underlying clinical diagnosis. The motivations for self-harm vary and it may be used to fulfill a number of different functions. These functions include self-harm being used as a coping mechanism which provides temporary relief of intense feelings such as anxiety, depression, stress, emotional numbness or a sense of failure or self-loathing and other mental traits including low self-esteem or perfectionism. Self-harm is often associated with a history of trauma and abuse, including emotional and sexual abuse. There are a number of different methods that can be used to treat self-harm and which concentrate on either treating the underlying causes or on treating the behaviour itself. When self-harm is associated with depression, antidepressant drugs and treatments may be effective. Other approaches involve avoidance

Patients find help with problem solving extremely valuable and can help them feel able to cope (McLaughlin 1999). Generally, after most assessments, I learnt that listening, giving emotional support and problem solving helped restore enough hope in the previously suicidal patient enable them to feel safe from future self harm. In only a handful of cases did my mentor and I need to admit patients to any inpatient facility under the Mental Health Act (1983). This was because they still felt at risk of future self-harm.

Deliberate self-harm is a term that covers a wide range of behaviours some of which are directly related to suicide and some are not. This is a relatively common behaviour that is little understood. This essay provides an overview of the nature and extent of those most at risk of self-harm, including causes and risk factors. Examining some of the stereotyping that surrounds self -harm, and looking at ways in which self-harm can be prevented.

Self-harm patients are at a risk for suicide whether this is an intended outcome or a result of self-harm gone wrong. 25% of people who commit suicide will have been seen in a hospital setting for a self harm injury in the past 12 months (Emerson, 2010). As well, 72% of suicide victims under the age of 25 have had a history or self-harm behavior (as sited in Cook, Clency, Sanderson, 2004). These statists provide a strong argument for the importance of vigilance and ongoing monitoring when providing care for clients who display self-harm behavior. This paper will argue the importance for close monitoring when caring for self harm but not necessarily the prevention of self harm itself. Vigilance and monitoring are important However there is evidence that complete preventions is not necessarily the best approach to self-harm (Duffin, 2006).

I used to be a cutter… but shh, don’t tell. Society didn't allow me to express my pain that way…Today’s society refuses to acknowledge many problems that teens deal with. People would rather believe in ‘happily ever after’ than face the truth, children are suffering. While it may seem to others that the problems are made up, its very real to the one dealing with them everyday. This suffering can leave permanent scars, and damage (if not ruin) their future. By remaining ignorant, self harm becomes more and more common, but at what cost? If educators and medical personnel were to be more educated on self harm and how to deal with it, teens and young adults would be more comfortable asking for help. Getttig rid of the stereotypes that

Warning signs for self-mutilation can be wearing covering clothing when it is warm out, and not letting people touch where they might be cutting themselves. It was once believed that people who self injure were just doing it for attention but recent studies have proven otherwise. A quote from the research from the CASE study in Europe stated that “The findings of this study show that adolescents who deliberately self-harm often report both cry of pain and cry for help motives. The majority of youngsters wanted to get relief from a terrible state of mind and/ or wanted to die with their act of self-harm. Although the study shows that there is also a cry for help, this type of motive seems to be less prominent than the cry of pain, which is inconsistent with the popular notion that adolescents deliberate self-harm is ‘only’ a cry for help (Scoliers, 2009). With this knowledge we need to make sure we help the children who are not only doing it to

The objective of the research paper was to determine the prevalence of self-harm in adolescents. The research was conducted using a survey with a self-report questionnaire. This research took place in a total of forty-one schools in England. Six thousand and twenty students participated in the research; most of those students were ages fifteen through sixteen. The main outcome of the research was deliberate self-harm. Results showed that self-harm was more common in females than it was in males (eleven point two percent vs three point two percent). Females reported the factors to deliberately self-harming to be recent self-harm by friend and/or family members, misuse of drugs, depression, anxiety, low self-esteem and impulsivity. Factors in males self-harming were suicidal behavior in friends and/or family members, drug use and low self-esteem. Based on all the statistics, researchers concluded that deliberate self-harm is quite common in adolescents, especially in females. They concluded that schools should integrate mental health awareness and educate the students about mental health problems along with screening for those at risk.

Alesia is a 14-year-old Caucasian female. She resides with her mother and is an only child. Alesia does not have a relationship with her father as she indicated he is a sociopath and abusive. She has ½ brother and a ½ sister, but does not have any communication. She was observed to be healthy, clean, and no marks or bruises visible. Alesia denied being touched inappropriately. She takes Adderall 30 mg for ADHD, birth control to regular her period, and Melotin to sleep.

Recovery planning is an important step to complete with a consumer whilst they are an inpatient as it supports the recovery of the consumer and instils hope, supports consumers to build on their strengths and promotes independence and partnership (Department of Health, 2010). By working in partnership with L targeted interventions were able to be established to achieve her goal of minimising her self-harming activity. Whilst L remained guarded during assessments she was able to collaborate with her case co-ordinator and develop her recovery plan. Within her recovery plan she was able to identify her triggers that make her upset and these included arguing with her mother, conflict with friends and stress from school and work. Whilst important to recognise what her triggers were it was also important for L to write down in a journal what she thought her warning signs were to help those around her recognise when she was becoming distressed. Journaling can be beneficial as it removes mental blocks and has a positive impact on a consumer’s physical wellbeing, as it is believed that writing down a stressful or traumatic event can allow a consumer to come to terms with the event and in turn reduce stress

In this article, Gratz and colleagues wanted to examine the role of childhood maltreatment, emotional inexpressivity, and affect intensity/reactivity in the self-harm behavior of 249 female college students. The authors hypothesized that these factors would have a multiplicative influence on risk for self-harm. Results showed 37% of participants reported a history of self-harm, with 17% reporting more than 10 incidents within the past. There were also no significant different in rates of self-harm between racial backgrounds, but that heterosexual women reported less cases of maltreatment. White participants reported the lowest levels of childhood maltreatment, therefor racial groups were categorized by white versus other backgrounds. Overall,