Teenage Self Harm: Why Does My Child Want To Hurt Themselves? #selfharm #suicideprevention #parentingsupport
I hate that I even have to address this issue!
In an ideal world, our children would be happy, and the thought of hurting themselves wouldn’t even cross their minds. Child suicide and self-harm are one of the SCARIEST things a parent can experience. It will wake you up in the middle of the night, startled and sweating. It will make the best caregiver into a hovering drone. And it will turn any parent into a better spy than any CIA agent. The bottom line is, you will never be the same again once you find out that your child is hurting like this. Nothing will ever be the same again. 
I will also admit that as a teenager, I NEVER, for even a moment, considered hurting myself as an option. So, you might be thinking, “How can you speak on this topic, then Kristina!?!?” Well, I can talk about child self-harm and suicide because I have had LOTS of experience talking kids out of hurting themselves both professionally and personally over my many years of working with children. I have worked with Children’s Hospital Psychologists to educate myself on best practices because this is such a tender subject, I never wanted to say or do the wrong thing. Now, I am passing on my knowledge to YOU! Not everyone has the time or money to research the facts and the HOW-TOs, plus the earlier you can catch the warning signs- the better chances you will have of a favorable outcome.
I never shy around this subject. I feel ignoring the problem or tiptoeing around the issue will only make things worse. I have found that 100% of my attempts to talk about it are more effective than sitting back and letting children deal with their emotional pain on their own. Children need our help. They WANT our help; they don’t know how to ask for it.
This week, I am posting an interview I did with Bryan Hemmer from the Inevitable You. He asks me three questions:
Teenage Self Harm
- Why are kids hurting themselves?
- What are the warning signs?
- What can parents do to help their child beyond medications and counselors?
PLEASE WATCH AND EDUCATE YOURSELF. Even if you don’t have a child that is in such a sad emotional state- You can educate yourself to help others or catch the warning signs early for the future. Our children need us.
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