Articles/narratives about self-harm/cutting

October 15, 2019 9:28 AM

I have a friend (S) with a teenage niece that has started cutting. S is good about being supportive, but this is out of her realm of experience, and looking for ways to increase her understanding I've found some previous AskMe threads with discussions that I'll send her, but I'm hoping that MeFites can recommend specific articles on the topic. I know she'd resonate more with a) personal narratives from any perspective, b) compassionate/non-judgmental, c) non-religious. Thanks for any suggestions
posted by Gorgik to Health & Fitness (4 answers total)

Best answer: I liked this New York Times piece a lot.
posted by Siobhan at 12:03 PM on October 15, 2019 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I will try to think of helpful resources but I can say a book to absolutely stay away from is Cutting by Steven Levenkron. The current Amazon listing says it has been updated so possibly it is better now, but when it was recommended by my daughter's therapist several (maybe five?) years ago it was one of the worst things I have ever read. I got as far as him saying that no child who self harms comes from a loving home. Yay parent blaming! I did not read more than a couple chapters and asked my daughter's therapist at the time if that was the current thinking in psychiatric circles and she said he comes from a Freudian background which I guess is an answer.

Having been through this I would be happy to correspond if your friend would like to message me. Good luck to her and her niece.
posted by Bresciabouvier at 12:26 PM on October 15, 2019 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I don't know if it's kosher to post our own stuff on the green (and I hope someone will delete if not!) but I've written about this.
posted by babelfish at 5:51 PM on October 15, 2019 [5 favorites]

A friend of my daughter's went through a phase of cutting that started around the time she turned 13. She was subject to anxiety attacks and obsessive thinking, and she described her cutting as a way to ground herself when her thoughts threatened to spiral out of control -- the act would bring her back to a more centered and present state of mind. The phase lasted around six months, and then once every few months or so for another year or two. From the articles linked here it seems like cutting can stem from a lot of different places, but I hadn't seen the particular perspective of my daughter's friend in there so I thought I'd share the story. Best wishes to your friend and her niece -- I'm so glad her niece has someone in her life being this thoughtful in a situation where many adults panic and freak out.

ps: the notion of reclaiming injury as a way to balance trauma or assert agency reminds me a lot of the function of the collars in the books that feature your namesake.
posted by slappy_pinchbottom at 10:31 PM on October 20, 2019