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A person who is thinking of killing themselves often tries to let someone else know how upset they are and without aupport some may follow through. Just because someone is thnking about suicide, it does not me that they will or will not. It's very tricky but there may be nothing stopping them so it is important that it is taken seriously. A basic understanding is that a person who truly attempts suicide seeks to end all the feelings whereas a person who self-mutilates seeks only to feel better. A self-injurer generally does not intend to die as a result of their acts. Many suicide attempts have been reported not to provide relief, to be repeated less frequently, and to have less communicative value in various research studies.

                     

Sometimes people can end up killing themselves accidentally and it is young people who are depressed or have an eating disorder are most at risk. Those who take illegal drugs or excessive amounts of alcohol are also at risk. Eating disorders and drug or alcohol misuse are almost separate topics of self-harm in themselves. Sometimes arguments with parents or a close friend will trigger this, and this is most common. People who suffer from abuse, neglect and rejection are more likely to harm themselves. In groups people often talk about things such as how they self-harm in order to cope, many often share ways to become thin and ‘copy cat’ self-harm may happen as a result.

   

Everyone at some point in their lives may bottle feelings and pressures up inside, for a self injurer concequences do happen as a result. Feelings of worthlessness and alienation follow. Many who self-injure say that they do it in order to feel something, to know that they're still alive. Anyone who is harming themselves is indeed struggling to cope and needs help. Without help, problems are likely to continue and even get worse. Some people will continue to harm themselves more and more seriously. The overall outcome may be the person end up killing themselves. It's estimated that 1 teenager in 10 could be affected, the true number however could be very different due so self-injury being a very private affair. It mainly affects girls and is rare in boys (7:1 female:male ratio). Self injury is much more common than suicide. Self-harm is always a sign of something being seriously wrong. Some people assume that self-injury is all about attention seeking but it is not necessarily attention-seeking. It may be for some but behind it is a problem and it is still a serious issue for all who self injure. Allthough self-injurious behavior is not suicidal in intent, it can easily lead to suicidal idelation or even when a self-harmer goes too far, suicide itself.

 

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Scars may fade over time, but never disappear entirely. For some people, scars are not an issue as they self-injure in ways that don't leave permanent marks or they only injure in places that are normally covered by clothing. Scars are often permanent for most who cut or burn. It may be hard to know if someone is resulting in methods of self-injury but there may be clues, such as refusing to wear anything with short sleeves or taking off jumpers for games. People should always take it seriously and listen, but there are many times when people are disgusted by it, and through lack of understanding close the subject. It is constructive to remind a person who self-harms the risks. Family and friends can often make getting help seem more attractive. Once the underlying problems have been sorted out it may be possible for sufferers to stop self-harming. "It's better to get help than to suffer in silence".	Coming Out Zone Leaving Home Surviving Homophobia
	Webpages relevant to this article:
	http://www.selfinjury.org.uk http://www.self-injury.net/ http://www.befrienders.org/directory /selfharm/ http://www.geocities.com/ anorexicsanonymous/self.html http://www.mind.org.uk/
	Message Board topics relevant to this article:
	Have you thought about suicide? posted by hidden_self
	Pain posted by blue haired anne
	Self Harm posted by hidden_self
	Cutting posted by shades