Self-harm is a general term for any behaviour, action or habit, which can cause damage to your health. It’s a wide area that covers a whole range of actions.
Self-harm is causing deliberate harm to your own body through physical abuse, for example cutting, burning, pulling hair, picking skin and deliberate bruising. However, this is not all, it can also include other things such as overeating, smoking, drinking too much alcohol or taking drugs. Self-harm is usually conducted at times of anger, distress, fear, emotional worry, depression or low self-esteem in order to manage negative feelings that cannot be dealt with in a rational or logical way by the person.
Alternatively, self-harm can be used as a form of self-punishment for something that the person has done, thinks they have done, are told by someone else that they have done, or that they have allowed to be done to themselves.
Find further advice on how to help a friend or family member: Lifesigns self-injury factsheet
