Self-Harm

Building skills and supports to cope with emotional pain, suffering, and numbness; increasing positive meaningful life experiences

When a person becomes overwhelmed and distressed, they may look to various avenues of relief to reduce their uncomfortable feelings, including self-harm. Self harming behaviors can be seen as a coping skill that a person acquires when they do not have other tools in their toolbox to navigate the challenges they may face. When working to address self harm, the main focus of treatment is finding new coping skills that encourage healing and help keep a person safe when facing distress.

I work with teens and adults who experience self-harming thoughts and behaviors to help them process their experiences.

Intensively trained Dialectical Behavioral Therapy counselor. DBT has been shown to help with self-harm behaviors.

Whether through cutting, hitting, or using a "good" behavior to the point of hurting ones self, many people will try to soothe distressing emotions or thoughts by hurting themself, usually beginning in their teen years. In session, we will talk through the purpose of the behavior, what it "gives", and find safer alternatives to achieve the same goals, while also working through the pain which led to the self-harm in the first place.

I have extensive training, expertise, and experience treating non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), and I am happy to provide a complimentary consult to anyone engaging in self-harm or having urges to self-harm, to determine whether DBT-informed therapy could be an effective treatment option.

I have 8 years of experience working with individuals that have significant urges to harm themselves or are experiencing suicidal ideation. I think that recognition, honesty, openness, and having a supportive ally, are really important steps in beginning the path of challenging self harm urges and actions.

Using Cognitive behavioral Therapy (CBT), I am able to guide you to healthier coping mechanisms.

I utilize DBT as a therapeutic method for BPD traits and characteristics of SH. I utilize diary cards and other DBT tools to help build insight into the behavior and work to identify healthy coping skills for intense emotions. I am foundationally trained in DBT through the Linehan Institute.

I work from a harm reduction framework with the ultimate goal in my work with clients to be that they utilize safe and consistent skills and tools rather than engaging in self harm. In my work with clients who self harm, my priority is not only their well being but also to hold space and give them grace as they walk along the path to a safe and fulfilling life.

I have been working with self-harm issues from a harm reduction lens for 2 years.

Self harm is in my opinion misunderstood. A client that is using self harm doesn't have the appropriate tools to manage distressing emotions. Clients that self harm are in an extreme amount of pain, and they take the pain out on themselves to feel better. Learning healthy and appropriate ways to tolerate, and work their way out of this addictive pattern of self abuse takes time, patience, and love.

I work with clients experiencing self-injury and suicidal ideation with a combination of behavioral and emotional approaches that balances harm-reduction with exploring the origins of the problem. We would alternate between skills practice, processing, and frequent risk-assessments.

One of my areas of expertise is on the topic of self-harm, or self-injury. I have done extensive research, including a tiny phenomenological study on the experience of self-injury in queer individuals. I have also been a member of the International Society for the Study of Self-Injury (ISSS) in the past and presented my research on self-harm.

Self-harm means hurting yourself on purpose. People may self-injure for many reasons. For some, it might feel like relief, like taking the lid off a pressure cooker. Others might self-harm because physical pain might remind them that they’re alive. But self-harm can sometimes be more severe than intended or lead to infection. Utilizing DBT, I have treated children, adolescents, and adults in decreasing the harmful behaviors and replace them with healthy and safe coping skills.

I have worked in various settings with clients struggling with severe mental health concerns and have been able to manage crisis and decrease their self-harm.