Teen Forums - Teen Chat, Teen Help, Teen Advice & Support

Why do people self harm ive never understood why?

Most people will never understand fully unless they do it really.
People do it for different reasons.
Some just do it for attention which is just pathetic ¬¬
Most people do it because they have no other way of expressing their anger and upset, nobody will listen to them and they really just want help. Its like a physical release. Everything builds up inside you but when you self harm its like letting it all out.

Personally I think it's stupidity... On-set by various reasons.

Depression and lack of knowing what to actually do could be one.

I think it's mostly depression. Or some people do it just because others do it.

There's a bunch of reasons why:
1.) It's to let them express the hurt and pain inside
2.) For attention
3.) A pre-suicide exercise
But those are the basic reasons why

Never mind.
cant delete my post mehhh >.<

In a way it is stupidity. But when your at the crappest points of your life, you dont care what happens

- To relieve pain/emotional stress.
- To feel incontrol
- Because they feel they deserve it.
- They like the feeling of pain.
- Makes them feel like there still alive.
- Its easier to turn the pain to yourself rather than deal with it properly.
Cuttings not always as bad as it seems though, it can save peoples lifes, stop them from going overboard, ending there lifes..

And yes some people do it for attention. But its not always in a bad way, sometimes its a cry for help, they're just not really sure how else to tell people how they're feeling.. But the people that do it for the wrong, just for the attention and not for anything else, really annoys me.. Because then most people get the thought into there head that everyone that cuts, cuts for attention.. I've cut for over 2 years (trying to stop though..), no ones ever seen my scars and really, no one in r/l knows, so how the hells that for attention, I spend most of the time hiding it and I rarely talk about it. It just annoys me that some people think that its all for attention. It's not that I like what I'm doing, but its how I've dealt with stuff, not the right way atall I know that, but not sure what I would have done without it, maybe of fallen apart completely.. Its not just as easy to change a habit when you get into it nomatter how bad or not so bad it may seem..

Well, it can be for heaps of reasons.

Sometimes it's because the feelings are too intense and some people have never learnt how to handle it properly. They don't have the words to communicate, or they don't have someone who they can trust to listen. It can be a way to put in concrete terms abstract emotions.

It can also be due to self hatred or as punishment. Sometimes people hate themselves, they believe that this is something which they deserve. That they should feel the pain, have the scars etc.

Another reason which hasn't been mentioned yet is because of something known as disassociation. Basically this happens if someone has been abused (particularly as a child) and have learnt to disassociate from themselves. Basically it's like they are not physically as aware of what is happening, they can often be looking in on themselves as though a spectator. Originally this just happens when they are abused, but often this then tends to happen whenever someone is stressed. Then, their body, often out of their control, cuts or self harms and they 'come back'.

Depersonalisation, which is similar to disassociation can also be a reason. Instead of going fully out of their body someone who is depersonalised can often feel unreal or out of touch with the world, this can happen to anybody basically. In this case cutting also helps a person feel 'real'

yeah, there's also a ton more reasons out there.

My sister self harms and shes only just turned 13, she does it because shes very depressed and very unhappy about my dad and his girlfriend both being alcoholics and many other reasons.
i think its sad that people my age and my sisters age have to result to self harm because they feel they have nothing else to do about their depression.

xx

it's a very confusing thing and there's many different reasons. The reasons vary from person to person.

1. For attention
2. A cry out for help, even if they hide their scars
3. Some people can't deal with emotional pain, so they'd rather feel physical pain
4. A release
5. Self-punishment

There's an endorphine release, and it distracts them from more complex problems.