When life's overwhelming...?

[Tundras]

I've noticed there's a stigma that comes with self-injury. Self-injury + Self-injurer = Mental illness and/or major trauma. Sometimes, of course, this is true. But as of late I've done a lot of reading on self-injury research that suggests sometimes an extremely stressful environment, combined with a lack of coping skills, leads to self-injury. (No mental illness or trauma added.) This is true for me in my latest relapse-- I'm no longer depressed, just stressed and having trouble finding a way to deal with it.

So... Do you have trouble handling stress? Does this hold true in your own life?

 

[Criada]

I think that is true of a lot of people... it's an unhealthy coping strategy, but it is better than not coping.
We just need to find an alternative which is less destructive

 

[ido]

I definitely think self-injury can stem from a lack of coping skills. I struggled with the desire to self-injure as a teen (I did not know what "cutting" was, so I did other things to harm myself). My struggle stemmed from overwhelming emotions that I did not know how to manage, as well as from verbal/emotional and physical abuse that caused me such deep pain that I was trying to find a way to "release" the pain.

I also struggled with depression, but that was a separate issue for me from the self-injury struggle.

I have found, as an adult, that I only re-visit the self-injury struggle when I am struggling with intense emotional pain. I have ways of coping with it that work for me, fortunately, but I have also found that I have a secondary struggle with "fight or flight" b/c of it and tend to want to just run away and escape whatever is upsetting me rather than being able to face it and try to fix it.

It's a never ending learning process - and one that many people are suprised to learn I struggle with when I share about it b/c I seem to put together on the surface/to the public eye.

 

[myJehovahRapha]

I definately agree, there were times during my struggle of self injury that was from an escape from depression, suicide attempt, or even stress. And it does come back if depression starts to come back. But mostly just when I'm really stressed.

I've noticed now, the wanting to self injure comes less and only in really difficult situations, though I am struggling with trichotillomania and I've noticed I do it when I feel nervous.

 

[Pasat_14]

I have gone thru the same thing as many others, depression, self harm but have found a way to crawl out of that black hole. Lately although I have not felt depressed as such there have been times I've wanted to go back to my old ways of self harm. I've found it very confusing - questioning whether I'm actually depressed again. I knew all along I wasn't.

I think for me it's just a way to really cry out for help when I am feeling stressed. People around me and at work always see me as the happy cheery one but sometimes I feel the need to say "no, I'm only human too" but it's like no matter how upset I am they still think I'm fine.

I guess you could then go on to argue that God should be the only one that matters in a time like that. He knows how I'm feeling and that should be all that matters.

I guess it's an ongoing struggle though. And quite a confusing one at that!!