Why is self-harm bad? Is self-harm considered an addiction?

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I’ve been “self-harming” for years now and i just dont understand why people flip out about it. Yes i understand that you’re permanently marking your body but hows it any different from a tattoo? its self expression right? well that’s what i think. A friend of mine told me that i’m addicted but i don’t think cutting or hurting yourself can be an addiction. I mean yeah i do it often and some of the things i do are a little i guess bad or whatever. When i do self-harm sometimes its not enough and i have to do more but im not overly depressed or anything like that, i genuinely like how it feels and looks. I mean i’ve taken a ton (over 20) online tests and they all say i have some personality and bipolar disorder but i dont know how reliable those are.

Anyway i’m just wondering how can self-harm be so bad? i think it can only be bad if you kill yourself but if you don’t then whats the big deal? And how can someone be addicted to it. Idk, im confused. someone please fill me in on the truth.

Tags: asked January 20, 2014

10 Answers

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Hello dear. I'm glad you asked this because i used to question the same thing aswell. Self harm can be a addiction for some people that do it often or regularily because when someone cuts themself it releases endorphins and adrenaline into your brain. The chemicals relaeased into your brain send signals to nerves that can make you feel numbed/temperarily better. This is because your brain is trying to help you deal with the wound. As you self harm during times of distress or depression, your body links the feeling of that distress or depression to the self harm. Your body releases you will wound yourself and craves the endorphins to feel better. This dangerous because over time you become immune to the endorphins. Which means you have to cut deeper to achieve the endorphins. Eventually one day you could cut too deep. So basically it is an addiction because it gives you chemicals that your body related to self harm, causing you to self harm more to get the chemicals, which you can get immune too, and could lead to cutting too deep.
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Hey, I think if its something you do then its good to ask questions about why youre doing it. You mentioned that self harming is like tattooing. I don't know about others but personally, I think theres a massive line between the too. Most people I know get tattoos through body art, self expression or just because they want too. some people are addicted to tattoo's but its usually a more healthy addiction. Many people self harm for different reasons but I don't think I have ever come across a person who self harms for a good reason. And yes, self harm can be very much an addiction, I was addicted for many years and it took me a long time to recover. if you are self harming purely based on the fact you like the feeling of being cut and you like how scars look I would suggest you get scarification done. Scarification is a type of body modification, it involves a trained artist scalping a design into your skin and it heals over as a patterned scar. The reason I suggest this is that you will get your desires you get from self harm only that scarification is a lot cleaner, safer and you have less chance of getting an infection. dirty wounds can lead to septicaemia and that's very serious.
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Hello Miss Rae, thank you for sharing your feelings with us.

Life is never easy, nor is it always fair. Sometimes things simply go bad, and we react badly to bad situations in an attempt to protect ourselves, but we all learn eventually that sometimes the greatest harm can result from the best intentions.

As the posters before me have stated, cutting provides a temporary relief from emotional distress because the act of cutting releases adrenaline and endorphins to numb the pain as your body sets to healing the damage. Most cutters do so because they feel like it is the only control they have over their own lives or their own bodies; it is an attempt at consoling themselves.

So, that is WHY cutting appears to help.

Now, onto why cutting is bad:

Cutting carries an extra possibility of addiction, and what happens if you cut yourself when you are in a particularly distressed state? You could permanently damage yourself, produce an infection and even die from one or the other. You are placing your health and life in the steadiness of your hands when you are in an emotionally compromised state.

Literally any emotion or emotional reaction carries the possibility of addiction, because the only pre-requisite to addiction is an addictive personality. (Note: some substances such as drugs are addictive because they do not simply produce a reaction, they literally alter brain chemistry, adding greatly to their addictive properties) Addiction is an unhealthy over-reaction to a particular stimuli that the individual considers pleasant.

You said you do not believe that you are addicted, but there are a few red flags to identify addiction, please Bookmark this page for your reference: http://mountainvistafarm.com/help-now/red-flags/

If you still do not feel that you are addicted, then please feel free to message me privately and I would be more than happy to help you try and understand your situation.

Please keep in contact and let us know how you're doing. If you feel you might hurt yourself or someone else, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255, their lines are open 24 hours a day.

Always remember that you matter, and you are not alone.
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Self harming is bad because literally you are taking out your emotions and issues out on your own body. Your body was not made for that. Intentional self harm actually goes against our instincts for survival. When we feel pain our brain is telling us to get away from what causes the pain for our survival. Tattoos are an art form. They are not meant for pain, but for meaning. One major problem with this is that cutting is a fad right now. People are doing it because they want to be "emo" or they think it makes them cool. I know this is not everyone, but I've seen enough to know that it's not okay. It spreads around a false message that people will buy into and think is okay to do. Cutting is a cry for help. Even for the people that actually are ashamed and trying to hide it, they are doing it because their lives are so out of control. How would you feel if someone you loved was cutting themselves? Would you really tell them that it's okay to do so? What if they cut too deep? Even on accident. It's flirting with Death, and honestly Death is unforgiving. If you are having such serious problems that you feel the need to hurt yourself then you should seek professional help. Cutting is a maladaptive coping mechanism. Nothing good can come out of it. Please get help. It is addicting. It's hard to break on your own. It is all the more reason to seek professional help.
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I don't even want to offer you advice on this situation but what I am going to put forward is the perspective that whilst everyone is entitled to your own view this is vile. To think that you could be so narrow minded as to not seeing ONE the dangers self-harm imposes and TWO the impact that self-harm has not only on yourself but those around you is just shocking. One day you may have children and what are you going to say to them when they ask what those marks are on your body... and how are you going to feel if one day you walk in to find your son and daughter slicing they're body. Self-harm is SERIOUS both physically and psychologically. I'm sorry if you take offense but quite frankly you're the reason that people out there who really need help don't get it. Grow up and take a real look at what you're doing with your life.
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If you were doing it to your baby sister or to a kid you were babysitting would you still consider it okay? Hurting yourself is worse then hurting someone close to you.

You are the one person on the planet who at any given time in your life are guaranteed to be on your own side, who is supposed to always love you and protect you and wish only the best for YOU, but here you are hurting yourself worse than anyone else.
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First of all, self harm is not "self expression." it is not some fashion trend, it is not some kind of puberty phase, it is a serious struggle. When you despise yourself or your life or have such strong urges to have a sense of control in your life, it is sad. I self harmed for about 7 years, but ive really been hurting myself in various ways my whole life. it can become a very very hard addictive battle and for a while i had a similar point of view as yours, where i didnt see why it was made such a big deal of and why people would freak out.
Finally, once i realized that it was a terrible thing filled of hatred and did not express love light or strength, i was ready to break the addiction and stop. So, listen or not, that is my opinion on why it is a harmful thing.
Id suggest that you go to see a therapist, and if you wont do that at least go see a school councelor. good luck.
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That's like a mother cutting her child, and saying "oh, well I'm helping you express yourself". Take cutting more seriously. Good luck. Stay strong.
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It is bad, the reason why people do it is what makes it bad, you can't punish yourself "body" for how you feel deep inside. I have struggled with self harm, and yes it actually is like an addiction. Once you start your body gets used to the pain, you get used to replacing your inner pain with your outer pain. The reason why I did it was because I felt in control over my own pain.
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I'm not some sadistic psychopath who goes around cutting people. I just enjoy it. It feels good, looks cool! the only bad thing about it is the scars and bruises but they all heal in time. Once i run out of space on one part i move on to another one until it heals up.I don't think you can be addicted to hurting yourself like someone can be addicted to drugs. But idk, maybe i sound like a total crazy chick but how bad is it really? The worse case scenario is death and i never push it that far.I don't want people to think im outta my mind, i'm just trying to understand why self harm is so awful. I mean the only person i'm hurting is myself. Is it bad because its not socially acceptable, like tattoos and piercings? Idk but i'm sure someone will tell me i'm wrong, again.