Some people intentionally hurt themselves as a way of coping with overwhelming emotion, distress, trauma, numbness or other difficult experiences.
Self-harm does not automatically mean that somebody wants to die.
But self-harm and suicidal distress can overlap, and both deserve support.
You can ask for help whether:
- you are thinking about self-harming;
- you have self-harmed once;
- self-harm has become repeated;
- your self-harm is becoming more frequent or severe;
- you are worried that your reasons for self-harming are changing;
- you are worried about somebody else.
You do not need to prove that your self-harm is “serious enough” before talking to someone.