Why does self harm seem so much more common an activity in the present time than it was in the past?

I think it’s because of a few reasons, the first being that it’s more commonly known about among young people now than it has been in the past. For example, a young person struggling with self confidence in the past (only, say, 40 years ago) would put themselves down, cry in their rooms and maybe act out in ways like cutting their hair in a moment of distress or punching a wall. To be honest, without technology connecting everyone and everything together, I would never think to, for example, slit my wrists as a way of releasing tension and anger. Nowadays young people have the knowledge of self harm and all the information they need at at their fingertips. Kids as young as 9 or 10 see people cutting and abusing themselves on websites and TV and that’s what gives them the idea to try it. A child/young teen would not come up with that idea by themselves.

The other reason I think self harm is more common is because of the devastatingly romantic twist that the media have put on it. Self harm has been glamorized and dramatized, both of which teens these days crave. You see pictures all over the web of beautiful young women lying half naked in an enchanted forest, blood dripping from her arms with a blooming rose in her mouth…. I believe those pictures give impressionable young people the suggestion in their minds that a prince charming is about to canter through the forest on a white horse and save the girl. A fantasy of which all teen girls desire in one way or another.

- I also partially blame the ‘emo’ craze for glamorizing self harm. But that would take too long for me to vent about hahaha.

And I think a lot of it has to do with teens craving attention that they don’t get from their parents. One problem with families nowadays- either both parents are working late, or the family only has one parent…. < seems to be the way these days.

Probably because, like Renee said, it’s more known about now. Pretty stupid though, really,like if you’re upset the first way you think of to cope shouldn’t be ‘wow I’m gonna try cutting up my thighs and arms now hmm maybe that’ll help me’, but I’m sure, as Renee also said, that a lot of it has to do with craving attention. There are perfectly acceptable ways to deal with problems that won’t leave a mark, but kids WANT their hurt to leave a mark so that people will see it and do something.

And no, I’m not being all OOH SELF HARMERS ONLY DO IT FOR ATTENTION!!111!!! HERPDERPDERP- I self harm. But I do believe one of the biggest reasons is craving attention, wanting someone to see the bruises and burns and cuts.

Self harm was just as common back when I was a teen, the difference was that nobody ever spoke of it. We didn’t have internet forums where we could go and chat with other brooding teens, so we sat alone in our rooms, cut our arms, and covered it up in any way possible. The act hasn’t changed - only the knowledge.

Ah, but you aren’t that old Colleen. I’m also wondering about even further back. Was it common? Did people just have more important things to think about?

I cut my initials into my arm with a razor blade when I was 11 or 12. I thought it would make me look “tough,” which I desperately wanted to be because I was hurting so bad inside. That was around 1963 or ‘64. So yeah, it’s been done before (though for me it was only that one time).

But I do think it has recently reached a critical mass of being a known “thing to do,” like tattoos and piercings, in a way that encourages more kids to do it now than before. As far as I knew back then, I was the only kid in the history of the world to ever cut myself like that. But I was the sort of kid who did lots of crazy, “Who does that?” kinds of things. Now, it seems you can be practically “normal” (whatever that means) and still cut yourself.