Publication
Talking about self-harm
What is self-harm?
People may cope with difficulties and distress in their lives in a number of ways which can be harmful to themselves. They may drink too much, overwork, smoke, eat unhealthy diets or abuse food or drugs. The term deliberate self-harm is used more often when people take overdoses or use other methods to try to kill themselves. However, most people who self-harm can make a clear distinction between suicidal acts and other motives for self-harming behaviour. Some of the ways people may harm themselves include cutting or scratching the skin, particularly the arms, burning themselves, biting or punching themselves or hitting their body against something. Some people may swallow or insert objects into themselves, whilst others may pull out their hair or eyelashes.
"I didn’t want to die, I just wanted to hurt."
Self-injury is another term which is becoming more commonly used. In this booklet the issues around repeated cutting of the skin, scratching, scalding and burning are explored using the term self-harm.