We would like to open this article by letting you know that if you feel that you, or a loved one is in immediate danger, to please reach out to emergency services or a professional psychotherapist for help.

Self-harm is the act of hurting oneself and includes cutting, burning, hair pulling, hitting, scratching and many forms of self-neglect. In many cases the person is looking for a way to deal with their emotional pain by using physical pain which may provide temporary relief from past trauma.

People who self harm are often trying to avoid feelings of anxiety, sadness, depression, anger, self-hatred or loneliness. Self-harm can be used as a coping mechanism when these emotions become unmanageable and overwhelming.

It can affect people from any background, country or age but often starts in early adolescence. Traumatic or difficult events can increase a person’s risk for self harm, including bullying, grief, mental illness and abuse.

It is important to resolve these core issues in order to manage self harm behaviours.

A Range Of Experts Available To You

IAHIP Psychotherapists are trained to help people deal with the issue of Self Harm. You can search the IAHIP Psychotherapist Directory for this particular issue or any of the issues that may have developed from these changes.

On the Directory page, simply type the issue into the ‘Areas of Interest’ Box:

Additional Resources

For more information on Self Harm you can access articles from our professional journal - Inside Out. Go to the top left of this website page and enter ‘Self Harm’ into the search box.