why is sh actually bad?

[39hatsune]

so like the title says, i dont really get why its such a problem if its in like 'safe' places? or why when people find out you are doing it, they get so upset or angry

its the one thing that actually helps me when im feeling horrible, and im not really cutting my wrists or anything like that, so i dont see why my method of coping is such a big deal to some people

i do understand that there are probably (?) better ways out there, but im not affecting anyone else by harming myself

i just dont get it

 

[Forveleth]

1. Doing physical damage to yourself is never good. Self-harm that breaks the skin always puts you at risk for infection. Injuries cause and inflammation/immune response in your body and repeatedly doing that to yourself is not healthy.
2. It can also become an addiction. I have seen several threads here of people saying the lighter self-harm they used to do is not enough and they start cutting deeper and deeper and deeper, thus increasing the risk in point one above.
3. It does not actually deal with the issues you are going through. It is used to temporarily relieve some sort of emotional pain or distract from a situation but does not provide a way of enabling you move towards the goal of not needing to go through such extreme measures to begin with.
4. A minor note that some people get upset by hearing about self-harm because they either cannot or do not want to imagine that things in this world are so bad and people are so helpless that it is a measure that they need to use. Similar to the topic of suicide, it shows the ugly part of society that no one wants to acknowledge.

 

[spiders.in.my.head]

honestly, i agree with you. im being relatively 'safe' with my sh, cutting in places where there are no major bloodlines, cleaning the cut afterwards etc, and i kind of know its bad, or at least that's what ive been made to feel like, but i don't really understand why.

like you said, even if temporarily, it makes me feel better. and it clears my head enough to not ctb on impulse or smth worse.
yeah, its probably an addiction, but wtf else am i gonna do?

 

[NonEssential]

its the one thing that actually helps me when im feeling horrible, i dont see why my method of coping is such a big deal to some people

I feel the same way whenever I'm drinking alcohol lol

 

[rainatthebusstop]

Outside of the risk of infection? Not that much

I think people without serious problems or who are "normal" get upset by the thought of someone harming themselves because they wouldn't never do that. "Hurting yourself is for the truly sad or evil attention seeking whores" is something I heard quite often in that regard. So it is eerily similar to alcohol or any other addiction in that regard. And you probably know how addicts who aren't rich Hollywood stars are treated

 

[awfullymorbid]

Im pretty sure some people are uneducated on whether stuff like that will kill you or not, even if its in safe places? Just a theory idk. Also at the end of the day you are still hurting yourself even if its a way of coping, so maybe they care enough about you to not want any harm done to you.

 

[39hatsune]

Outside of the risk of infection? Not that much

I think people without serious problems or who are "normal" get upset by the thought of someone harming themselves because they wouldn't never do that. "Hurting yourself is for the truly sad or evil attention seeking whores" is something I heard quite often in that regard. So it is eerily similar to alcohol or any other addiction in that regard. And you probably know how addicts who aren't rich Hollywood stars are treated

i hate when people say its attention seeking i dont show my scars publicly at all but if anything its more embarrassing and i get nervous about new people having to see them

 

[petmom]

1. Doing physical damage to yourself is never good. Self-harm that breaks the skin always puts you at risk for infection. Injuries cause and inflammation/immune response in your body and repeatedly doing that to yourself is not healthy.
2. It can also become an addiction. I have seen several threads here of people saying the lighter self-harm they used to do is not enough and they start cutting deeper and deeper and deeper, thus increasing the risk in point one above.
3. It does not actually deal with the issues you are going through. It is used to temporarily relieve some sort of emotional pain or distract from a situation but does not provide a way of enabling you move towards the goal of not needing to go through such extreme measures to begin with.
4. A minor note that some people get upset by hearing about self-harm because they either cannot or do not want to imagine that things in this world are so bad and people are so helpless that it is a measure that they need to use. Similar to the topic of suicide, it shows the ugly part of society that no one wants to acknowledge.

Indeed. Even still I'm not exactly thinking straight when I do it. I try less dangerous areas or ride the urge as long as I can

 

[GroundControl]

@Forveleth hit the nail on the head with everything. I am currently a little over 2 years clean from self harm. I am nowhere near recovery, and really I only stopped because there was no other choice, but it left me severely scarred. It started small and evolved. It became a rampant addiction that overtook my daily life. Everything I did revolved around how to hide it, how to do it, and when I'd do it next. I couldn't do fun things with friends and family because of it. I was lying constantly, eroding my relationships, just for my next fix.

I am now left with severe scarring and nerve damage. My own choices, yes, but the consequences are no less shitty. I had several infections despite my attempts at wound care. I nearly tore apart my relationship with my family, and I traumatized them when they walked in on me. Self harm affects everything, including your relationships, your work, your school.

All of that is why it's often seen as bad. I think, objectively, it's bad health wise? But tbh. If I could again I would, lol

 

[nowizard]

as to why people get upset, i believe from an outsiders perspective, psychologically it just doesn't make sense for a human to want to harm themselves so it freaks them out. theres so i think there's also the gore aspect of it that makes them upset. as someone who sh, ive gotten so desensitized to it, i got super confused why people around me were freaked out when they saw my scars