Why Are Suicide And Self Harm Always Put In The Same Category?

[Cool Cat]

This is something I don't get. I've sometimes read fact sheets about self-harm that say it is not suicidal behaviour or related to suicide and yet it's always in the same section as the suicide factsheets.

Similarly, a lot of psychologists also almost suggest they are mutually exclusive and then you have special clinics for people who self-harm or are suicidal. I could go on.

I was reading an information booklet on mental health that was checked by mental health professionals. Again, suicide and self-harm are on the same page.

Are the two in the same category and if not, why are they always linked together?

 

[Kintsugi]

Where would they be better organized in such a pamphlet? Think of writing an essay. Sometimes you have two paragraphs that don't quite fit together yet are similar enough and don't really fit elsewhere, so concurrently they go.

I would imagine the reason they are typically grouped together is for ease of reference for the consumer looking for those subjects, not because they are seen as intrinsically linked or integral to one another.

 

[risingsun]

Are the two in the same category and if not, why are they always linked together?

I'm not quite sure because they are different. I suppose because attempted suicide is self harm in a sense.

However, self harm typically refers to those who regulate their emotions through the act, want to punish themselves in a way, or feel they cannot express their emotions. Of course these are only a few examples of the "reasons," but typically self-injurers are not necessarily suicidal. Hope this helps, Rising

 

[Suzetig]

I work with people who self harm and those who are suicidal, sometimes the same people are in both "categories". The drive to self harm is such a complex thing, it can be a coping mechanism, or a cry for help, or an expression of feeling, or a way to stave off suicide or a whole bunch of other things that we may not fully understand. Sometimes it's possible for someone who self harms to go further than they realised and put their life in danger and there are folk who would class this as suicide rather than accidental death. I guess I'm trying to say that understanding what drives a person to suicide or self harm is a complex thing, and people fear one will lead to the other, so will look for them together - it makes sense to keep them close together even when you do understand them to be largely different things.

 

[Deleted member 1860]

Good question.

Self-harm in the traditional sense (ie physically hurting ourselves by cutting, burning, hitting, etc) is indeed lumped together with suicide. But....there are so many things that people do to harm themselves that aren't seen as "self-harm" but still have the same negative effects on our bodes. Drinking. Drugging. Eating disorders. I could go on... They all have the same theme of doing something harmful to ourselves in order to make the bad feelings go away, but nobody thinks to lump those in with self-harm, right?

The only difference is the poison you choose. And unfortunately, those who go the direct route, the route that isn't socially acceptable (like drinking) are looked down upon. Blah. Maybe I should have just become an alcoholic like in previous generations of my family. At least it would have been more acceptable.

 

[joeylittle]

Really good question. I agree with lots that's been said already. I think some of the clinical mashing-up comes from there basically being two kinds of self-harm. There's the type that is called parasuicidal behavior, and that is any kind of harming of the self that is non-lethal but generally connected in some intention to seeking the lethal act. Then there is self-injury, aka self-harm, which is it's own thing. In self-injury the abuse (harming) of the self generates a feeling of release or some kind of satisfaction for the person inflicting it.

Like, I have cut myself before. But I don't get any release from it - for me, it's a form of practicing. It's parasuicidal in nature.

Interesting to note also, that cutting is only one thing considered self-injury. The eating disorders qualify as well - seems to be anything you can really hurt yourself with that you happen to get some release/relief from.

 

[Cool Cat]

Cheers for the answers guys @joeylittle, @Solara, @Suzetig, @risingsun and @Simply Simon!

Interesting to note also, that cutting is only one thing considered self-injury.

Random technical note but I don't think thats true? There are heaps of other ways. One of the ways I used to do it required much more medical attention than cutting.

I suppose they are linked together because as @Suzetig said, many fall into both categories. How strong would ye say the link is? I can never figure out what and why there is a link between self-harm and suicide. Why are self-harmers more likely or at higher risk of suicide? Or is this a myth?

Maybe are they linked because they're both 'serious' problems?

 

[joeylittle]

Ah, @Cool Cat, I agree with you - my grammar was poor. A better version of that sentence is:
"It is also interesting to note that cutting is not the only form of self-injury."
So, i think we are on the same side of the fence, there. :)

It seems that there isn't really solid clinical agreement about the relationship between suicidal intent and self-harm. I found papers saying that there was a high correlation and papers saying that there wasn't. It's like one of those things where you can count the numbers different ways depending on what answer you want. My opinion would be that they both have some strain of depression within the root cause, and that's the basic connection. But I'm not a doctor.