Forums → WEPR → Self-Destruction

First of all, I feel that you have the wrong idea about why they hurt themselves. It isn't because they have decided to stop caring about life, so they cause pain to themselves.

Think of the acting of cutting like taking a drug that would give you instant euphoria. We will say marijuana. When a person cuts his/herself, it is like taking a hit off of that joint. The brain will release some endorphines. Being that I am not a cutter, I cannot fully give you an explanation. But I will say, to them it is a sense of control and a release from those intense emotions they are having. You may go punch something to release your anger, but a cutter will go cut themselves.

Maybe someone that has experience with cutting can explain this. I once dated a girl that enjoyed cutting herself and we found a happy medium. It wasn't always about the bad things in her life. She would do it when she was happy, too.

I have heard that cutting themselves is people not being able to come to terms with emotional pain and so prefer the physical pain because they feel in control of that or something along those lines.

That would be one side of the story, woody. It isn't JUST to get rid of pain, but just because that individual likes to do it.

Some people do start causing pain to themselves when they "stop caring about life," but that is usally the affect of depression. That would cause suicide, cutting, drugs etc.

Some motivations for cutting, in single words:

* Catharsis/penitence
* Desperation/frustration
* Dissociation
* Masochism (perhaps with bloodlust elements)

My adolescence wasn't a happy one- the usual difficulties with growing up were accompanied by a strained relationship with my mother (now healing), and the onset of bipolar disorder (yay for unexplainable mood swings). I remember one incident where I was particularly frustrated- these are the kind of times where one can feel that there's nowhere else to go, so I locked myself in the room. But I'm prone to feelings of guilt, so in a fit of anger at myself, I attempted to cut myself...but the knife was too blunt.

I'm not what anybody would, by any long stretch of the imagination, call a cutter. The above however had a number of factors feeding into it- I wanted a symbolic gesture to convey regret, anger and I supposed some kind of angst. Sometimes (from personal knowledge) 'cutters' will wear these scars as an emblem, whether it's private or whether they show them to the world.

This does apply to all, probably only relates mainly to the first two points. I would say that in a sense I'm a masochistic (not in a fetishistic sense) thrill-junkie but my preferred forms of pain (no pain, no gain) are different. Knives aren't my thing. In a way though, cutting can be a manifestation of when somebody loses all affect, such that pain is the only thing that keeps them feeling 'real', which I'm sure I've mentioned before here. Other people I know who are involved in 'cutting' in a different sense do so within the bounds of 'bloodletting' and sadism, but I should probably steer away from such discussion on this forum *knowing looks*.

Asherlee, I'm pleasantly surprised that you found a happy medium regarding it though. Most cutters I know and the general population on cutting communities are made to feel ashamed and insecure of this particular part of their behavior/history, which I think does more harm than good.

Strop, that is another view on it, surely. So, it seems that something like this cannot be categorized easily. Sounds like the bloody DSM...

*ponders symptoms and pathologies*

But, yes. We did find a happy medium. I don't ever want someone I am with feel like they need to hide something from me. So, I try to understand where they are coming from. Once she explained it, I found no reason to "step-in" and make her stop. I told her that if I saw signs of serious danger then I would intervene.

Hm, given the DSM is just a loose guideline and recommendation for research, I'm not sure I remembered seeing anything about cutting in there...maybe a brief passage or two about self-harming behaviors, but I can't even be sure of that. Maybe I should read it again.

Not that we really need to for practical purposes. You know how to apply good principles in real life anyway.

could just be bored lol

^^ I really doubt that. If someone is cutting because they are bored, than they have a mental disorder, or lust for blood.

Now by saying that, I am NOT saying that all "cutters" have a mental disorder, but some cases do fall under that.....

I think 'bored' would also likely fit in the 'dissociative' category. Though yeah, haha, that'd have to be one heck of a boredom to override all semblance of normative sense.

There's also the "ow, I cut myself because I got bored and started playing with my switchblade!" which I've done before...but that doesn't count!!!

Whatever you do don't press the big red button!

Sorry, I had to get that one off my chest. But for the topic at hand

* Masochism (perhaps with bloodlust elements)

Many people are starting to not care about life so they decide to hurt themselves, but do you think this is necessary for their angst and depression.

It is most definately not a mental disorder in all cases. Blood lust is probably a mental disorder, but those who cut to relinquish pain are torn apart on the inside, so they see it as a way to "take away" the pain which is quite ironic.

well something is wrong with you if you express your emotions in a self-destructive way.

Maybe, it is that one person that did have a mental disorder came up with the idea and all of these reasons for it, and somehow it caught on to others in the public. Eventually, whenever someone thought that they might have the same problem as that guy, then they would try his techniques and believe that they were doing something worthwhile. I don't think that everyone who does enjoy it just came up with it on their own.

Or, they were bored.

well something is wrong with you if you express your emotions in a self-destructive way.

Think of the acting of cutting like taking a drug that would give you instant euphoria. We will say marijuana. When a person cuts his/herself, it is like taking a hit off of that joint. The brain will release some endorphines. Being that I am not a cutter, I cannot fully give you an explanation. But I will say, to them it is a sense of control and a release from those intense emotions they are having. You may go punch something to release your anger, but a cutter will go cut themselves.

One can become less disturbed about all things in the world. At least IMHO. In a good way.

Expressing feelings 'in the right way' is only a normative sense so I guess it should be said that certain people don't have to conform to this. Pathology is no longer strictly tied to normativity either (thank god), hence the DSM-IV TR recommendation that for many behaviors, it not be viewed as a pathology unless it causes disruption to function, distress or both.

In the cases of Bran/Asherlee's then ladyfriend (teehee, had to use that word), I wouldn't say that it was problematic unless it carried a considerable risk of doing something life-threatening e.g. "oops, I nicked an artery", which, I'm assuming, isn't that likely.

What's your take on this anyway, Bran? I'm not going to pretend to understand it on an empathetic/personal level, and I wouldn't want to post misinformation.