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About self-harm

There are lots of reasons that someone might self-harm, including coping with difficult emotions or experiences.

Whatever you're going through, we're here for you.

This page covers:

This page is part of our guide to:

Self-harm

If you feel unable to keep yourself safe, it's a mental health emergency.

Get emergency advice

What is self-harm?

Self-harm is when you hurt yourself as a way of dealing with very difficult feelings, painful memories or overwhelming situations and experiences. Some people have described self-harm as a way to:

  • Express something that is hard to put into words
  • Turn invisible thoughts or feelings into something visible
  • Change emotional pain into physical pain
  • Reduce overwhelming emotional feelings or thoughts
  • Feel more in control
  • Escape traumatic memories
  • Have something in life that they can rely on
  • Punish themselves for their feelings and experiences
  • Stop feeling numb, disconnected or dissociated
  • Create a reason to physically care for themselves
  • Express suicidal feelings and thoughts without taking their own life

After self-harming, you may feel a short-term sense of release or control. This can make you more likely to depend on it and less able to stop.

But it's likely that difficult feelings will return soon after. This can include feelings of guilt or shame.

Talking about self-harm

Watch Ben, Lechelle, Debbie and Zainab talk about the reasons behind their self-harm, the different ways they have learned to cope and how they think friends and family could have supported them.

How do people self-harm?

There are lots of different ways that people self-harm. Some people always use the same method. Others hurt themselves in different ways at different times.

Warning: it can be upsetting and triggering to read information about how to self-harm. If you're feeling vulnerable, you might not want to read the information below.

Ways people self-harm can include:

  • Cutting yourself
  • Poisoning yourself
  • Over-eating or under-eating
  • Exercising excessively
  • Biting yourself
  • Picking or scratching at your skin
  • Burning your skin
  • Inserting objects into your body
  • Hitting yourself or walls
  • Misusing alcohol, prescription or recreational drugs
  • Pulling your hair
  • Having unsafe sex
  • Self-neglect
  • Putting yourself at risk of harm, such as getting into fights

If you self-harm, it's important that you know how to look after any injuries and that you have access to the first aid equipment you need. LifeSIGNS has information on first aid for self-harm.

If you're worried about an injury or not sure how to look after it, see your GP or a pharmacist.

One of my biggest barriers to getting help was actually not admitting to myself that I had a problem. I used to tell myself that it wasn't 'real' self-harm.

Why do people self-harm?

There are lots of reasons why people self-harm. It's different for everyone.

For some people, self-harm is linked to specific experiences and is a way of dealing with something that's happening now or in the past. For others, the reasons are less clear and can be harder to make sense of.

People of all ages and backgrounds can self-harm. There is no one typical person who hurts themselves.

Any difficult experience can cause someone to self-harm. Some reasons include:

Sometimes people use stigmatising language about self-harm, for example that it's attention-seeking. Comments like this can leave you feeling judged and alone.

But some of us might use self-harm to bring attention to how we feel. Remember that there is nothing wrong with wanting to have your feelings taken seriously.

A lot of people keep their self-harm private, so it can also be painful to have your behaviour misunderstood in this way.

No matter your reasons for self-harm, you deserve sympathy from those around you, including health professionals. And if you don't know or understand the reasons for your self-harm, you're not alone. And you can still get help.

I started self-harming when I was 15 or 16. I can't remember why I started, but that's what I did.

Published: August 2024

Next review planned: August 2027

References and bibliography available on request.

If you want to reproduce this content, see our permissions and licensing page.

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