The Psychology of Self-Injury: Exploring Self-Harm & Mental Health

What are some common reasons people give for choosing to disclose their self-injury? How do positive and negative reactions affect someone’s willingness to disclose their self-injury or self-harm in the future and their likelihood of discontinuing their self-injury? In this episode, Dr. Ammerman shares findings from her research in which individuals who self-injure share their answers to these questions. She also explains why only providing "tangible aid" such as offering to help someone who self-injures get medical help or referring them to a mental health professional may not always be all that helpful.

Learn more about Dr. Ammerman and her work in the Affect, Suicide, Self-Injury, and Social Triggers (ASSIST) Lab at https://assistlab.nd.edu/. Below are links to some of her research referenced in this episode:

The development of a measure to assess social reactions to self-injury disclosure

How should we respond to non-suicidal self-injury disclosures?: An examination of perceived reactions to disclosure, depression, and suicide risk

Characterizing the choice to disclose nonsuicidal self‐injury

Follow Dr. Westers on Instagram and Twitter (@DocWesters). To join ISSS, visit itriples.org and follow ISSS on Facebook and Twitter (@ITripleS).

Imagine receiving a phone call from your child's school expressing concern that your child might be suicidal. This is Dee's story.  In this episode she shares about how she was able to differentiate between self-harm of suicide and nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI), support her daughter through the process, connect her to therapy, and what advice she has for parents in similar circumstances.

Follow Dr. Westers on Instagram and Twitter (@DocWesters). To join ISSS, visit itriples.org and follow ISSS on Facebook and Twitter (@ITripleS).

What is the quality of online health information related to self-injury and self-harm? What are some of the risks and benefits related to seeking self-injury content on the internet? In this episode, Dr. Lewis details 3 overarching risks and 4 overarching benefits of accessing self-injury content online. He also discusses his research related to the effects of hopeless vs. hopeful comments on YouTube videos about self-injury. 

To watch Dr. Lewis' TEDx talk about his own lived experience of self-injury on YouTube, visit https://youtu.be/G17iMOw0ar8. Learn more about self-injury and Dr. Lewis' work at Self-injury Outreach & Support (SiOS)  (http://sioutreach.org/). Follow SiOS on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/sioutreach) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/sioutreach). Below are links to his research and resources referenced in this episode:

Non-suicidal self-injury, youth, and the Internet: What mental health professionals need to know

Googling self-injury: The state of health Information obtained through online searches for self-injury

The Scope of Nonsuicidal Self-Injury on YouTube

Self-Injury Resources:

1. Self-injury Outreach & Support (SiOS) (http://sioutreach.org/)
2. Shedding Light on Self-Injury (https://www.self-injury.org.au/)
3. Self-Injury & Recovery Resources (SIRR) (www.selfinjury.bctr.cornell.edu)
4. The International Society for the Study of Self-Injury (ISSS) (https://itriples.org/)

Follow Dr. Westers on Instagram and Twitter (@DocWesters). To join ISSS, visit itriples.org and follow ISSS on Facebook and Twitter (@ITripleS).

What are common ways we talk about self-injury or self-harm that may inadvertently perpetuate stigma about the behavior and those who engage in it? In this episode, Dr. Hasking offers a unique way of thinking about words like "contagious" and "recovery." She also provides insights into the pros and cons of including a Nonsuicidal Self-Injury Disorder as a potential formal diagnosis in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). Learn more about self-injury and Dr. Hasking's work at Shedding Light on Self-Injury (https://www.self-injury.org.au/). Below are links to some of her research referenced in this episode:

Cutting words: A commentary on language and stigma in the context of nonsuicidal self-injury

Self-injury recovery: A person-centered framework

Stigma and nonsuicidal self-injury: Application of a conceptual framework

Follow Dr. Westers on Instagram and Twitter (@DocWesters). To join ISSS, visit itriples.org and follow ISSS on Facebook and Twitter (@ITripleS).

If you suspect that your child might be engaging in self-injury, how do you start the conversation and how often should you check in with your child so that you are not being too invasive? How can parents safely set rules if they fear their child might self-injure in response to these rules? In this episode, we answer these questions and more as we talk about how parents and loved ones can foster healing for their children who self-injure or self-harm as well as for themselves.

Dr. Whitlock’s book “Healing Self-Injury: A Compassionate Guide for Parents and Other Loved Ones” is available on Amazon (www.amazon.com/Healing-Self-Injury-Compassionate-Guide-Parents/dp/0199391602). Dr. Whitlock is a Research Scientist in the Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research at Cornell University and the founder and director of the Self-Injury & Recovery Resources (SIRR) research program, which serves as one of the best and most comprehensive collations of online resources about self-injury: www.selfinjury.bctr.cornell.edu. It is a go-to resource for parents, therapists, friends, family members, schools, other caring adults, the media, and individuals with lived experience of self-injury. Follow them on Instagram @cornell_crpsir. 

Dr. Whitlock is also Senior Advisor for The JED Foundation. To learn more about The JED Foundation, visit https://www.jedfoundation.org/.

Follow Dr. Westers on Instagram and Twitter (@DocWesters). To join ISSS, visit itriples.org and follow ISSS on Facebook and Twitter (@ITripleS).

Today there is still confusion among a lot people about the differences between suicide and nonsuicidal self-injury. Although nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) is a form of self-harm and a risk factor for attempting suicide, the two behaviors should not be confused and those who self-injure should not be assumed to be “suicidal.” In this episode, we discuss how the onset, frequency, method, and function of self-injury are related to risk for suicide attempt.

Follow Dr. Westers on Instagram and Twitter (@DocWesters). To join ISSS, visit itriples.org and follow ISSS on Facebook and Twitter (@ITripleS).

Self-injury does not reflect typical behavior, but it is also not uncommon. One in five adolescents across the globe reports having self-injured, and one in twenty adolescents in the United States reports having self-injured 6 or more times in the past 12 months. Self-injury isn’t limited to adolescents: 13% of young adults and 6% of adults also report having engaged in self-injury.

But why? According to research, there are two primary categories: emotional reasons and social reasons. In this inaugural episode of The Psychology of Self-Injury, Dr. Nicholas Westers delves into these two categories and asks leading experts, an individual with lived experience of self-injury, and a parent of a teen who self-injures: "Why do people self-injure or self-harm?"

Follow Dr. Westers on Instagram and Twitter (@DocWesters). To join ISSS, visit itriples.org and follow ISSS on Facebook and Twitter (@ITripleS).