Self-injury behavior: how can nurses help?

Although historical, religious, and cultural examples provide some understanding of SIB, the importance of further research, especially in adolescent SIB, cannot be underestimated. Nursing research is needed to explore the correlation between SIB and the spiritual needs of adolescents. Shannon (2005) stated that SIB is a common precursor to suicide. If adolescents at risk for this behavior are identified earlier, perhaps fewer teens will be lost to suicide. Although many use self-injury as short-term relief from their problems, it is repetitive in nature. If nurses are able to assist adolescents in interrupting emerging patterns of SIB, future self-injury may be prevented. Adolescents at risk for self-injury behavior are searching for a way to give voice to their pain. When approached with a caring attitude that reflects the love of Christ, when listened to with intentionality, and when nurtured by an authentic presence, self-injurers are relieved to externalize their difficult emotions through verbal means rather than to record their pain with visible stories on their skin. For even when the wounds heal, the scars remain a visible reminder of the hurt hiding within. In essence, the history of the self-injurer is recorded on their skin.