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Using Technology to Address Self-Injury

Using Technology to Address Self-Injury. Maureen Rose Counseling 511: Technology for School Guidance Spring 2008 http://maureenannrose.angelfire.com/ mrose@holyfamily.edu. Introduction.

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Using Technology to Address Self-Injury

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  1. Using Technology to Address Self-Injury Maureen Rose Counseling 511: Technology for School Guidance Spring 2008 http://maureenannrose.angelfire.com/ mrose@holyfamily.edu

  2. Introduction As professionals working with children, we see a multitude of issues that affect our students’ lives on a daily basis. Our students face challenges everyday and try to cope as best as they can with the resources offered to them. Unfortunately, there are some students who choose coping mechanisms that are unhealthy and dangerous – one such mechanism is self-injury. Self-injury, sometimes referred to as self-mutilation or self-harm, is an issue that has many myths associated with it. Some feel as though it is a failed attempt at suicide or a way of gaining attention or notoriety. These are the exceptions, not the rule. Teens in our country are participating in this behavior and it is a topic with which we as professionals working with children must become aware. This presentation will explain what self-injury is, who partakes in this behavior and why people choose to self-injure. You will also learn what we as professionals can do to respond appropriately to a student who has experience with self-injury and how to recognize the warning signs of a self-injurer.

  3. This presentation will answer the following questions: • What is self-injury? • Who partakes in this behavior? • Why would a person choose to self-injure? • What are the warning signs of a person who self-injures? • How can I appropriately confront a person who self-injures? • What help is there for a person who self-injures? • What should our school do about self-injury?

  4. What is Self-Injury? • Mental Health America defines self-injury as, “the deliberate, repetitive, impulsive, non-lethal harming of one’s self.” • Includes: • Cutting • Scratching • Burning • Punching or hitting oneself • Breaking one’s own bones • Infecting oneself

  5. Who partakes in this behavior? • About 2,000,000 people in the United States • Majority are teens or young adults • Women outnumber men • People of all backgrounds

  6. Why would a person choose to self-injure? • A coping strategy • To express emotional pain • To communicate feelings that one is unable to put into words • A way of having power over something of which no one else does

  7. What are the warning signs of a person who self-injures? • According to Self-Injury Help: • Wearing jackets, long-sleeved shirts or any type of heavy clothing in warm weather (to hide cuts on body) • Wearing wristbands (to hide cuts on wrists) • Openly injuring oneself in subtle ways • Low self esteem • Possessing razors, razor blades, sharp objects, lighters etc., that seem to be out of place or not normally used by the person in question

  8. What are the warning signs of a person who self-injures? • Blood on clothing, or in the room of the person in question • Difficulty expressing feelings • Poor performance at school or work • Depression • Negative self-talk: • I hate life • Life is meaningless • No one likes me • I feel empty

  9. How can I appropriately confront a person who self-injures? • Secret Shame says: • Ultimatums do NOT work. Ever • Acknowledge the pain of your loved one • Don’t force things

  10. What help is there for a person who self-injures? • The Mayo Clinic describes three treatment options available: • Psychotherapy • To help identify underlying issues that trigger self-injury • Medications • To treat the symptoms associated with self-injury, like depression • Psychiatric Hospitalization • Provides a safe environment and more intensive treatment to help during a crisis

  11. What help is there for a person who self-injures? • Websites that assist a person who self-injures: • National Self Harm Network (NSHN) • Offers forums for survivors of self-injury, friends and family members of those that self-injure • Children’s Hospital of Boston’s Center for Young Women's Health • Information on this site is written TO teens, rather than ABOUT teens • Can’t Shout, Can’t Scream • Online magazine written by a survivor of self-injury

  12. What help is there for a person who self-injures? Sample page from “Can’t Shout, Can’t Scream”

  13. What should our school do about self-injury? • Maintain an open and collaborative relationship with the students • Host a staff in-service to teach the realities of self-injury • Offer a workshop for parents on how to deal with self-injurious behaviors • Present in-class presentations for students about self-injury • Provide resources on school’s website

  14. Additional Resources • For more information regarding self-injury, please use the following resources: • Internet Address Book: Self-Injury Websites • Research Excerpts File: Self-Injury • Maureen Rose’s Website

  15. I hope that you found the information from this presentation to be informative and eye-opening. If you would like more information about self-injury, please feel free to visit my website, where I have listed a multitude of websites and organizations that specialize in this area.Thank you.

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