You Probably Know A Couple Hundred People Who Have Self-Injured

Non-suicidal self-injury , or NSSI, is such a widely misunderstood behavior. There is a noticeable deficit of research and scholarly writing on the subject. Even practitioners are often unprepared to spot and treat NSSI. Until the Fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V) was published in 2013, NSSI was only considered a symptom of other disorders and was rarely the subject of research and analysis. We'll talk more later about what qualifies as NSSI, but just know that it can include a variety of behaviors and there really is no authoritative list used as methodological guidance for research. For this reason, and all of the typical obstacles, it is difficult to get an accurate estimation of prevalence. A recent meta-analysis (a survey of other studies) hoped to bring some uniformity to the area and combined the data. Here is what the researchers found:

source

These numbers may seem shocking. Keep in mind that it is also believed that up to 25% of people who have self-harmed only engaged in one episode of such behavior. For comparison, think of these numbers like you would a statistic of drug-use, rather than drug-addiction: a lot more people have engaged in self-harm than those who have developed patterns or dependencies.

It is also hard to find an article that doesn't highlight how "strange" and "alarming" the behavior is. Don't get me wrong, it should not be taken lightly. But, we have found a way to talk about things like depression and alcoholism without isolating labels. I think part of the reason is that a lot of people simply cannot relate or easily empathize with NSSI. Also, there is a real lack of public dialogue on the subject. Most people have no frame of reference for this behavior. When they encounter self-harm they are often frightened because it is completely foreign. Maybe you're experiencing those feelings right now.

I plan to write a lot more on this subject, but I will leave it here for today. If you do or have engaged in NSSI, know you're not alone. If this is a totally new concept to you, I encourage you to hang in. You may not know it, but it is possible that some of your friends or family may really need your support.

Until next time, be blessed.

Sam

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