Self-Harm: Borderline Personality Disor

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Self-Harm: The Reality

Jennifer Winston

Psychology

Professor Kerlin

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Abstract

Self-Harm includes many different behaviors in which an individual hurts themselves intentionally. There is no specific demographic of people that tend to self-injure more than others. There are many different reasons that a person chooses to self-injure. These reasons include poor self-image issues, unable to cope and express emotions, control issues, and even suicide. Self-Harm is a common problem among people who have Borderline Personality Disorder. Borderline Personality Disorder is a mental illness in which an individual struggles dealing with powerful emotions, self-destructive behavior, inaccurate self-image, and unhealthy

relationships. Many celebrities in the public eye have struggled with self-mutilation in their life. These celebrities include musicians, actors, actresses, comedians, and even royalty. There is recovery from self-harm. There are treatment centers that serve those that self-injure. There is medication to treat the underlying psychiatric problems associated with self-harm. Counseling helps some individuals. There are also support groups online, as well as in person, that a self-injurer can attend.

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What is Self-Harm
Self-Harm is a captivating and harmful coping strategy that people have been struggling with for thousands of years. People harm themselves for many different reasons, yet self-harm stands to be one of the most misunderstood issues in society. As far back as biblical times, self-harm, or self-mutilation is mentioned. In the Holy Bible it says, “You shall not make any cuts on your body for the dead or tattoo yourselves: I am the Lord.” (Leviticus 19:28 English Standard Version), and also “And they cried aloud and cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances, until the blood gushed out upon them.” (1 Kings 18:28) Self-mutilation is something that people have been struggling with for generation after generation, and is still a wide-spread problem in our culture today.
Self-Harm includes many different behaviors in which an individual intentionally hurts themselves. In, “Self-Mutilation Introducing Issues with Opposing Viewpoints”, self-harm is described as “the actions of those who intentionally hurt themselves in a way that causes tissue damage to the body. It includes a range of behaviors that are socially approved and that are usually without suicidal intent, including cutting, scratching, or carving of the skin; burning, slapping, or punching one’s body; picking at scabs until they bleed; hitting a heavy object; pulling out hair; biting oneself; breaking bones; and swallowing toxins.” (Williams, 2009, p. 7) The most common form of self-harm is cutting. Many times an outsider sees the actions of a self-mutilator as insane, and incorrectly assumes that they are suicidal. In actuality, most people that
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self-injure are not suicidal. Self-harm affects a wide variety of demographics. While, “White women reported higher prevalence rates of various self-harm behaviors than African-American women.” (Sansone, 2012, p. 50), it does still happened within both races. Often times, self-mutilation is common in individuals that were physically and sexually abused as children. It is more common among young women than men. While self-harm is more common in certain groups of people, it is not exclusive to a single race, gender, age, or socioeconomic status. A self-mutilator can be anyone from a high school student, to a successful lawyer, to a stay-at-home mom.
Why People Self-Injure and Do They Recover?
There are many reasons that a person may self-mutilate. There are times when suicide is a goal when self-mutilating, but again, not usually. Oddly enough, “Prospective studies show a
substantial risk of suicide after adolescent self-harm that results in hospital presentation.” (Hawton, Saunders, O’Connor, 2012, p. 2376) Also, “risk of suicide after self-harm is more likely in male adolescents, individuals who have had psychiatric care” (p. 2376) This information leads one to believe that there is something about being locked up within a psychiatric facility that can trigger a non-suicidal person to suddenly turn to suicide. However, this is more common among males than females.
Typically, when someone cuts themselves, it is an escape from emotions. It’s an unhealthy coping strategy. As described in the film, “Cut-up kids: The epidemic of self-harm”, “When you drag the blade across your skin, it just feels like a release. Like when you hold your breath until you feel like you’re gonna blow up. And self-harm is like when you breathe again.”(1.00 min) When a person who is not a self-injurer gets upset, they have a wide array of things to do to deal with what they are feeling. People cope by going and talking to a friend or family member, others write poems and journal, and some people go an exercise. For an individual that self-injures these things are not options. They do not work. Hurting themselves is the only option.
It has also been reported that self-harm is about control. If an individual is living in an environment where they feel things are out of control, hurting themselves is one things that they can control. For example, a son cannot control the fact that his dad is a raging alcoholic that is

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emotionally abusive; but he can cut himself to deal cope with the emotional turmoil he dealing with.
A reason that many women self-mutilate is because of poor self-image issues. She may be so unhappy with what she sees when she looks in the mirror that it makes her feel better to intentionally hurt herself, because she feels she deserves the pain. They feel as though they can cut the ugliness out of themselves. This is why often times a woman that suffers with anorexia or bulimia is also a secret cutter.
There is good news though, people do recover from self-harm. Treatment options consist of a wide varieties of methods include inpatient treatment facilities, individual counseling, psychiatric medication, and support groups (both on the internet and in person). For someone who is not ready to seek treatment, but wants to stop self-mutilating, there are simple things like journaling and making art that can be helpful. However, treatment is highly recommended because it give the individual an opportunity to unload their secret on someone. It is so freeing to finally be able to talk about. It is so therapeutic to know that they are not the only one struggling with self-harm. There is so much healing that comes from simply showing someone their scars for the first time. Once you get something out in the open and talk about it, it is like you are telling on yourself. You now have to be accountable for your actions. In many therapy and treatment settings, the individual is asked to sign a no self-harm contract, which is giving their commitment to abstain from self-injurious activities. It takes hard-work and determination, but with treatment, individuals can find new, more healthy, ways of coping.
Self-Harm and Borderline Personality Disorder
Although there is not a specific mental disorder that people that self-injure all have, borderline personality disorder is common amongst self-injurers.

Borderline Personality Disorder is a mental disorder in which individuals struggle with intense emotions, reckless behavior, unhealthy relationships, and unrealistic self-image issues. In diagnosing someone with Borderline Personality Disorder, one would look to identify self-damaging impulsive behaviors such as substance abuse, stealing, spending, excessive gambling, reckless driving, binging and purging, as well as “recurrent suicidal behavior, gestures, or threats, or self-mutilation.” (Sutton, 2005, p. 350) Not all people that have Borderline Personality Disorder self-mutilate, and not all people that self-mutilate have Borderline Personality Disorder. People dealing with the powerful emotions, associated with those with Borderline Personality Disorder, are flooded with intense feelings and have no coping methods to release them. In addition to that, people with Borderline Personality Disorder often times get themselves into unhealthy relationships. Unhealthy relationships can lead to an unhealthy living environment. As discussed in section two, an unhealthy living environment can lead to an individual injuring themselves in order to feel as though they have some control over things in their

lives.

Celebrities That Self-Mutilate
There are many famous celebrities that have struggled with self-harm. One of which is Jessicka Addams, a singer in the well-known gothic rock band Jack off Jill. In her song “Strawberry Gashes” she gives a descriptive window into the mind of a cutter. Addams would frequently cut herself when she was up on stage. On the Jack of Jill website, Addams is asked
to explain why she cuts herself so much. She gives a vivid description of being filled up with so much anger and rage and a fear of expressing it outwardly without hurting other people. She described being filled with intense emotions since she was child, upon stuffing her emotions she became numb. The only way to escape the numb feeling she would cut herself, so that she could feel human again.
Famous musician, Fiona Apple, struggled with the dual diagnosis of anorexia and self-harm. Famous actor, Russel Brand, cuts to calm himself. He is also a former heroin addict, sex addict, and recovering alcoholic. Johnny Depp has been known to cut himself on several occasions, for the reason of commemorating important events in his life. Another famous actor that is a self-mutilator is Colin Farrell. He is a drug addict and alcoholic and has been known to pull his own hair out. Famous painter Vincent Van Gogh struggled with bipolar disorder and cut his own ear off and possibly committed suicide. Saturday Night Live star Darrell Hammond is reported to have struggled with self-harm his entire life, and he even cut himself backstage at SNL.
Katie Holmes, Angelina Jolie, Christina Ricci, Courtney Love, Marilyn Manson, Shirley Manson, Amy Winehouse, and even Princess Diana have struggled with self-harm. Even a
princess does not have an immunity to such issues. She has admitted to cutting her arms and legs and suffered with bulimia for years as well. Celebrities that self-injure are under a tremendous amount of pressure. After all, self-harm is a secret problem and they are always in the public eye.
Personal Reflection about Self-Harm
I am so passionate about educating about self-harm because I used to be a cutter. I started when I was 12 years old. I struggled with depression and did not talk about it. When I was growing up I was under the impression that getting mad was not okay. Therefore, when I was mad I just stuffed it. When I was depressed I just stuffed it.
One time I was really mad about something that happened at school and tripped and skinned my knee; and realized how much better I felt as I stared at the bloody wound. I moved on to dragging safety pins across my arm, and soon graduated to razor blades. It became my addiction. I would get such as release, as the boy in the film described. When I saw the blood drip down my arm it was as though all my anger, depression, and fears bled out.
I was an active child and was constantly coming up with different excuses to explain the bandages and scars. I played sports year round in high school, therefore wearing long sleeves all the time was not an option. I would focus on a small area of my arm and make as many cuts as I could in that small area then cover them with bandages and would wear a sweatband around my arm. I knew hurting myself was wrong, but at the time I could not see why. There were times when I could hardly wait to get home and get behind a closed door so that I could cut. It was my magic solution to everything.

At some point during high school, my parents found out. This is where treatment began. I was sent to different counselors and psychologists, and was put on different psychiatric medications. I was taught to write poetry and journal my emotions, which helped marginally, but could never compare to self-harm. In time, I discovered equally destructive coping strategies when I was introduced to drugs and alcohol, but I could write a book on all that. The two habits were deeply intertwined. I would stop cutting when I would be using a lot of drugs and alcohol. When I would get sober, I would start cutting again. For me personally, it was not until I turned my will and my life over to Jesus Christ that I began to recover.
The main point I want to make is, I recovered. I recovered from it all. It has been 4 years since I have intentionally harmed myself. I have been completely sober for 3 years now. All glory goes to God for my recovery. I have now made it my mission in life to use my experiences to help others who are struggling with self-harm and substance abuse. I am a small group leader at Celebrate Recovery. I am perusing a degree in social work, so that I can make it my career to work at a drug and alcohol treatment center. I am extremely grateful for all the struggles I have gone through, and am looking forward to continuing to make a difference in this world.

References
Cut-up kids: The epidemic of self-harm [Video file]. (2006). In Films On Demand. Retrieved
March 3, 2015, from http://digital.films.com/PortalPlaylists.aspx?aid=740&xtid=39641
Hawton, K., Saunders, K. E. A., & O'Connor, R.,C. (2012). Self-harm and suicide in adolescents. The Lancet, 379(9834), 2373-2382. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(12)60322-5
Sansone, R. (2012). An examination of racial differences in self-harm behavior. Psychiatry Research, 200(1), 49-51. doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2012.05.021
Sutton, J. (2005). Healing the hurt within : Understanding self-injury and self-harm, and heal the emotional wounds (2nd ed.. ed.). Oxford: Oxford : How To Books.
Williams, M. E., 1960-. (2009). Self-mutilation. Detroit: Detroit : Greenhaven Press.