Melanie Weimer – from Germany – did not want to show her arms for a long time, even on hot days. Whatever the weather, she wore long sleeves to cover her scars.
This is the first summer in years that she has gone to work wearing a T-shirt, and she has also worn short-sleeved clothes when outside of work. It was not strange to her that people were looking at her and the many scars on her arms, and she said, “If they had only asked me what happened, then I would have felt grateful.”
Wimmer, 31, inflicted these scars on herself using a razor blade, some of which were deep and others were less deep. Wimmer suffers from borderline personality disorder, which causes those who suffer from it to suffer from severe emotional and mood swings. Many people who suffer from this disease resort to harming themselves in order to relieve stress.
Speaking about the worst times she went through, Wimmer said, “I couldn’t help myself,” but she always felt upset with herself afterward and blamed herself.
Non-suicidal self-injurious behavior is the term doctors give to people who intentionally harm themselves. Some may do it once, while there are others who repeat this self-harming behavior.
Schizophrenia
But the issue is not always related to borderline personality disorder. Michael Case, director of the University Clinic for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychiatry in Bern, Switzerland, says, “Self-harm is primarily an expression of severe emotional suffering or stress, and of course this can result in the context of almost any mental illness.” “. He added that it can also occur in the case of depression or schizophrenia.
Casey noted that this disorder often affects young people. After working on a study that included 9,500 schoolchildren in Germany, he concluded that about 18% of children had already experienced self-harm.
Kayes explained that the problem has worsened since the Corona pandemic, noting that “the potential driving force is social media sites.”
People who search for content on topics such as grief or crises often see more similar material, and then end up seeing content about self-harm and suicide.
Wimmer explained that it is very easy to indulge in negative emotions online. She says that sometimes people brag about being in the hospital again or how deeply injured they are, and that means they are getting attention. She added, “After that, a kind of competition and challenge emerges.”
Many patients who see psychotherapist Sascha Zolliger at the Nuremberg Clinic made similar observations about the Internet, and Zolliger expressed concern that this might prompt some to imitate what they see. He added, “Nowadays, the idea of self-harm is no longer as far-fetched as it was 20 years ago. There are blogs, websites, and forums that talk about this issue, and films are being made about it. People talk about it, sing, and write about it.”
Zolliger explained that the Internet can also help. People can find support faster, realizing they are not alone. “Some people really believe in it – and when they come to the clinic, they are amazed at how many people have the same problem,” he said.
Wimmer felt this way before she underwent treatment. She said, “Communicating with patients was important to me. Otherwise, I was always the odd one out. Now finally there is someone who feels the same way as me.”
Wimmer explains that it took her a long time to reach this stage. She kept the problem a secret for years. This changed when she ended up in the emergency room, after two of her friends took her to the hospital. She said that she realized then that she could not continue like this.
Emotional disturbances
According to the study of school students in Germany, many of those who suffer from emotional disorders do not seek help due to shyness or other reasons. Case explained that among those suffering from mental health problems, only 25% seek professional help. That’s what worries him and other specialists.
He said, “We know that teenagers who resort to self-harm often have suicidal thoughts, and at some point the risk of committing suicide increases.”
Specialists at universities and university hospitals in Germany have developed an online program specialized in providing quick and flexible assistance to adolescents and young adults.
The program includes 700 people, and is now being evaluated to see if it helped them or not. Case, who is the program coordinator, said that the data will be available at the beginning of 2025.
For about a year, Wimmer has not cut herself with razors or burned her hands. She has learned better ways to deal with her emotions. Instead, she plays with her cats, practices yoga and reads a lot to distract herself. “The scars will never disappear completely,” she said. Therefore, you no longer work to hide it. She added, “She is a part of me.” Acceptance is part of the recovery process.