The Habit of Self Harming - Essay Example

Working effectively and safely with Children & Young People who self harm Self harm as the term implies is the deliberate harming or injuring of one's own self without any intention of committing suicide. Even though, it does not sound like a sensible thing to do to a sane person, an ever increasing number of people are involved in this kind of activity to their own detriment. Self harm usually happens when one cuts, abuses the usage of drugs or other substances such as alcohol, punches, hits, tears, scratches, chokes, bites, burns one's own self or inhales harmful or toxic substances. The habit of self harming grows with time. It usually is an addictive practice for most people. People resort to it as their only means of escape from their daily troubles while some do it only for some time to vent out their frustration. There is no regular pattern of self harming for most people; some do it on a daily basis while others do it for a temporary period of time. These people often develop suicidal tendencies but that is rare. Moreover, self harming is usually more common in youngsters or teenagers because their minds are still immature, inexperienced and limited. They usually see self-mutilation as an easy way out of things as at this stage most teenagers have a sensitive relationship with their parents and therefore they cannot confide in them. Friends do not always give healthy and beneficial advice and they might be involved in self-harming too which definitely has a negative influence on the person asking for assistance. They might also use this practice to punish themselves if they are feeling guilty over some thing or dissatisfied with the outcomes of any issue. It is quite hard to find statistics regarding people who indulge in self-harm as they usually do not reveal their wounds and try to pretend that they were hurt by accident. Generally, however, it is reported that women have a higher tendency of self harming than in men. The age bracket when self harming is most common is usually between 11 and 25, both in men and women. Surprising is the fact that self harming is more common in children who are well taken care of, belong to well-off families and enjoy good living conditions. The basic reason for this can be attributed to the psychology of these children. Children belonging to this kind of lifestyle are less ready to face challenges, have strained relationships with their parents and are easily influenced because they are exposed to a lot of things other children are not. Looked after children tend to feel over protected by their parents and this generates frustration and lack of tolerance in them. They feel they are imprisoned and are not at a liberty to do what they want to do like other children who do not belong to such families. They enjoy the luxuries of life but remain dissatisfied. If they have working parents, and children are left to the care of servants and other members of the family, they can easily resort to self harm to relieve themselves of the "suffocating" feeling they experience in their homes. Disobeying their parents gives them satisfaction and makes them feel they can get away with some things, even if they are not allowed to do the rest of the things they would like to do. In contrast, however, are children who have suffered mental trauma or abuse in childhood and self harm to cope up with the bitter memories. Children abuse has become quite common and it may adversely affect people in their later years. Children's immature mind may also be affected by the negative attitudes of teachers and a bad scolding at school may be imprinted in their minds forever which may lead them to disastrous activities. Parent's neglect has its share too in making children and the youths of today, violent. If the childhood memories of people are darkened by their parent's arguing, bickering and fights, then the children are likely to grow up quite aggressive and may want to take it out on themselves in their later years. Neglect and inattentiveness of parents also makes them less confident and confiding towards others. They see self harm as a way of narrating their woes as they lack the courage to confide in someone. Self harm may be common in those children whose parents are divorced and who have more to deal with from an early stage. Reports have shown that the increase in divorce rates have also led to increase in troubles of children. Being brought up by a single parent may not be very relaxing, if the family has to face financial crisis. Children who are forced to accept bigger responsibilities at an earlier stage lose their innocence quicker and if they feel that there is no one to watch over them, they might turn violent and may be attracted towards self harming. Self harm, however, can be seen as a solution when it saves a person from committing suicide. The concept states that people self harm as a means of coping up with their troubles but do not want to take away their life. It is helpful in the sense that it keeps away people from killing themselves in distress and people feel relieved after only cutting, bruising, or harming themselves temporarily. Commonly, it attracts attention as well, and the person might not have to self harm again if his motives of gaining attention from parents are achieved. Nurses all over the world are of the opinion that allowing patients to continue self harm minimizes risk and makes them manage their feelings. Even though, it is not the best solution available but it certainly leads away from committing suicide or doing something even more harmful. Jeremy Bore, an Exeter prison nurse says "Controlled self-harm is much, much safer for patients" (Triggle, 2006) When a person gets involved in self harming practices, it is necessary that he gets the right kind of help. It is essential to confide in someone who is trustworthy and reliable. If the self harming person thinks that the he cannot bear his troubles alone safely, he should look for guidance and assistance from elders or teachers. For those, who are in contact with people who self harm, there are a number of things one can do to help them cope up. Firstly, one needs to have a helpful and kind behavior to such children. It must be kept in mind that they might be self harming to seek attention. To resolve this problem, proper attention should be duly given right from the start. One could ask young people to participate in activities so that they have a sense of purpose in their life which would give them motivation. It is also helpful to talk to self injuring people about their troubles. Sharing your own troubles with them make them feel that they are not alone and gives them more courage than one could imagine. One could also maintain a journal to keep records of the progress made or the changes in the behavior and activities of children. Going on a walk with children or encouraging them to take part in sports goes a long way in improving the self esteem of children and will keep them away from self harming. Teachers can be asked to supervise punching exercises, like punching stuff toys to help let out some anger in children. Encouraging young people to sing or to listen to music can prove to very relaxing and it will be addictive enough to keep people away from idle and negative self harming thoughts. To reduce the number of people who self harm, it is necessary that everyone takes a little responsibility and attempt to provide help and counsel to those who are in need of it. It is essential to build a friendly and problem free society where one could live in peace and harmony. References: Triggle, N. (2006, April Tuesday). Nurses back supervised self-harm. Retrieved August Thursday, 2007, from BBC NEWS: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4942834.stm Read More