Why do I want to self harm?

Self harm can be difficult for people to understand. Sometimes we don't know how to deal with our emotions when they become overwhelming, and emotional pain is hard to deal with. So people try to make that pain physical instead of emotional so that it can be dealt with easier.

You want to self harm because you're scared. You want to distract yourself from the internal pain you're feeling and replace it with physical pain, as if it might dull your feelings. You want control. You might think that it's your final resort, but it's not. We have plenty of people here, always willing to help.

Often people who self-harm are looking for a way to express their emotions in a physical way. A common response for people when they are asked why they self-harm is because it's a way to physically express the pain they are feeling. Also the act of self-harming releases "feel-good" neurotransmitters because of the pain it produces.

The desire or drive to self-harm can be caused or triggered by numerous factors. To some, self-harming is a rewarding act, meaning that the person finds a level of pleasure in self-harming and such level of pleasure feeds on and reinforces the behavior. On the other hand, some individuals self-harm as a coping mechanism. In such cases, events or circumstances in the person's life become the trigger to the behavior. In all, when the person is faced with a challenge, the person engages in self-harm to cope with the life event. Lastly, there are individuals who self-harm with the intent to end their lives. Such cases are extreme ones, but are important to consider when asking why is it that you want to self-harm, especially because those who self-harm are at a higher risk of suicide intent and engaging in suicidal behaviors. If you believe that you may be engaging in self-harm with the intent of ending your life, call the national suicide prevention lifeline and a person will be available to assist you (1 (800) 273-8255). If you believe you are engaging in self-harm as a coping mechanism, you could try talking to a trusted adult/individual to help you vent. However, if your need to self-harm is intense, I would encourage you to seek assistance from a qualified individual, someone who can not only hear you but help you cope effectively/safely. Lastly, if you are engaging in self-harm because it feels rewarding, you can find alternate activities that can mask your need to self-harm. In doing so, you can progressively extinct your behavior by removing the reinforcement. Needless to say, seeking help form a qualified professional is always something I will recommend. There is nothing bad about doing so. On the contrary, I see it as a sign of strength for seeking improvement and self-growth. Also, please consider that there are many other reasons why a person may engage in self-harm. The examples above are just a few reasons to why people may engage in such behavior. You can overcome all of your problems.

you may feel stuck. you may feel unable to cope with an emotion. you may feel addicted. you may not know what other options are out there. try holding ice cubes in your hands or engaging in an activity you enjoy.

from my own personal experience, self harm can be something that you do for a multitude of reasons ranging from feeling numb to an attempt on your life. I self harmed for many reasons, to feel something, to hurt myself instead of others and eventually it lead to an attempt on my life. Everyone self harms for different reasons. The sooner help is received for self harm the sooner the issues for the self harm are addressed. I was always very ashamed of my scars but I no longer hide them or feel ashamed, I am somewhat proud of my white lines as they are proof that I survived and proof that recovery is entirely possible.

It could be for multiple reasons. it could be a singular one of these or even a couple at the same time. it depends if you want to do it to numb emotional pain or to feel something more than numb. in my experience there are three main reasons why; to either numb overwhelming emotion, because of guilt and punishment or to feel something when you don't think you can.

Sometimes, people just want to be in control of their own pain rather than be hurt by others uncontrollably.

There are many reasons why you want to self-harm. In many of the times, you want to punish yourself for something. Self harming also is a message from your mind that you don't respect your body. Not respecting your body, means you don't love yourself. And how can we stop this cycle? We can stop by trying to control our minds as much as possible. Look for therapy, things that distracts you, don't stay alone in places you can do it and also... look for help! Come talk to us. I can help you get through this.

That's a very complicated question. There are so many different reasons that people feel the need to self harm. It may help to see a therapist or psychologist about your symptoms so that they can help you determine the source of your desire to self-harm and develop coping skills to replace it.