When we think of self-harm, we often think of slitting our wrists until we see the bone, burning our inner thighs like Ginny in Ginny and Georgia, banging our heads against the wall repeatedly, or scratching our skin until we are bleeding and we have skin beneath our nails. And thanks (but no thanks) to the film industry, self-harm is seen as something that every teenager goes through and a fast way to express our emotions and feelings or even cope with our daily stresses.
In this article, we will look at some ways we self-harm, which may not be obvious or visible to most people.
Sleep deprivation
Both over- and under-sleeping— are dangerous for your health and overall wellbeing. Oversleeping can be a symptom of depression, while undersleeping can be a cause of insomnia. When you deliberately keep yourself awake because you believe you can’t rest until this or that has been completed, it could deteriorate your health and worsen or arouse moodiness, insomnia, a lack of focus, and poor memory.
Choosing unhealthy relationships
The keyword here is ‘choosing’. When you realise that you are in an unhealthy or unbalanced relationship, be it with your parents, siblings, relatives, friends, or even your significant other, you owe it to yourself to address the issue. That is because you have no control over how someone acts, regardless of whether they are good people or not. However, once you notice the unhealthy traits, you ought to bring them to the surface and make them known.
The right people will see how it affects you and change. If there is no change in behaviour, distance yourself and set firm boundaries that will protect you mentally, physically, and even financially. Choosing to stay with an unhealthy partner who repeatedly causes you harm will leave you feeling anxious, lonely, and threatened.
Starving ourselves
When you push aside food because you’re too busy with work or school to eat, you are doing your body a disservice. Eventually, this leads to binge-eating, which is far more negative because what do most people binge-eat? A balanced, full-course meal? No, they binge-eat snacks, candy, chocolate, cake, etc., all of which are very unhealthy and have no nutritional value.
Eating only when you ‘feel’ hungry is terrible advice. You should rather have a set time to have your meals, so that can look like breakfast at 6a.m., lunch at 12 p.m., and supper at 6p.m. However you plan your meals and mealtime, consistency is more important because your body needs regular fuel. If you don’t eat enough, you risk your body seeking and turning to your muscles for fuel, developing eating disorders, and even diseases like low blood pressure.
Overworking
Rest is important. There is no glory or praise for people who brag about “I only slept for two hours” or “I never have time to do ABC.” Taking time off helps prevent burnout or lifelong diseases like heart attacks. You don’t always have to be busy. Your weekends are off days for a reason. Sit still, visit friends, take a hike, or go to the village. Take some time off and disconnect. Be intentional about recharging.
Perfectionism
While it is good to strive for excellence in your work and school, perfectionists often have high levels of stress because they cannot move past something until it’s up to a particular standard. Your 100% effort will look different each day because you’re human, and you will go through setbacks and hurdles, fall sick, and just have an ‘off day’. Embrace those, and don’t allow work to consume you wholly.
There you have it, folks! If you identify one of these patterns or know someone who could benefit from reading this article, don’t hesitate to share it with them! This article was inspired by Kati Morton, a licensed marriage and family therapist. Check her out on YouTube.
