Citation

Martínez-Carpio PA, Alvarez M, Fortea R, Bedoya Del Campillo A. Rev. Esp. Sanid. Penit. 2021; 23(2): 86-87.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2021, Sociedad Española de Sanidad Penitenciaria, Publisher Cometa)

DOI

10.18176/resp.00035

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Self harm is the intentional direct injury of one's own body without suicidal intention. It is regarded as a non-verbal form of communication used to express suffering. Self injury can also be understood as a way of releasing feelings of anger, rage or emotional pain, since the feeling of physical pain has a mildly tranquilising effect. A number of authors believe that it is a call for attention and help by publicly showing internal suffering. However, some self-injuries are committed for personal benefit and efforts are made to conceal them.

Self-harm is much more common amongst adolescents and in the prison setting. The most common forms amongst this age group are cutting the skin, hitting oneself, burns, pulling out one's own hair, pricking, scratching and pinching. Many types of self-injuries have been described in the prison setting, such as incised wounds or chinazos, especially on the left arm, the insertion of metal objects (clips, nails, screws, etc.), ingesting foreign objects, especially batteries and razor blades, punching the wall, most frequently with the right hand, swallowing bleach or detergents, head-butting the wall, burning oneself with cigarettes, etc.


Stitching one's own lips is a very rare type of self-harm, but it has been described previously in prisons. Vera-Remartínez et al. show images of two cases...

Language: en