|
INSIDE PERSPECTIVES of AS & Neurodiversity |
SELF-INJURING
Many autistic and other sensitive personality types prefer harming themselves, or an inanimate object, rather than taking their frustration out on others. Here are some reported reasons for self-injuring:
· Severe stress. Either because the situation is one which would be stressful to anyone, or due to being so physically and/or emotionally sensitive that intense stress is caused by anything disharmonious, confusing or overwhelming.
“In certain overwhelming circumstances throughout my life I have responded with a fist into a wall, or a head bang, or the like.. I have sensory triggers as well as the aforementioned communication frustrations which lead to self punishment. I am also sensitive to criticism... Feeling bad makes me feel bad - ‘StrangeGirl’, adult Aspie from UK
· Frustration.
“I will admit, there have been times when I have been so frustrated that I have boxed my head in anger and groaned, and, surprisingly enough, it DID feel better!” - Tom, adult Aspie from USA
“I do still sometimes hit my head... when I feel I'm just not getting through to someone and it literally feels like I AM *banging my head on a brick wall*” - ‘Stawberry’, adult non-Aspie
· Depression, inner pain and inability to understand or express feelings verbally.
“It doesn’t have anything to do with AS per se. It’s connected to depression. It hurts somewhere inside that’s intangible and impossible to describe in words. Deep pain inside. To cut oneself then makes the pain visible, it becomes understandable why it hurts then. You can see it and touch it. It is moving the pain inside that is hard to understand, to a place where it is understandable.” - An AS girl from Sweden
· Abuse. Being a victim of physical, emotional or sexual abuse.
“Why did I do it? I think it was because I was sexually abused by my father all my childhood and I hated myself, hated my life, hated being in my body and didn't feel I belonged or fitted in anywhere.” - ‘Strawberry’, non-Aspie
· Control.
- Tobias, adult Aspie from Sweden
“I used to cut my wrists. It gave me a sense of control. Whenever I feel out of control, the one thing I feel that I CAN control is whether I live or die. I can kill myself, or starve myself, or slice my wrists. The more I slice, the better I feel.” - Tom, adult Aspie from USA
· Release.
“I remember self harming in my teens, To be honest doing it was kinda release, if that makes sense? I had a lot of hurt inside (which I did not and still do not understand) and the hurt physically to myself helped in some strange way. It was kinda a phase I went through, even though I'd never heard of self harming. Fortunately I stopped and it was never very serious, just a few little cuts. I do find myself more likely to self harm when I am frustrated. ” - Julie, adult Aspie from England)
· Protest, punishment or cry for attention.
“I wanted to punish OTHERS and I did so by hurting myself and then describing it in detail to carefully chosen friends or other people one wished to punish, because one knew they would be worried.” - Maria, adult Aspie from Sweden
· Self-punishment.
“It can also be about self-punishment. A sense that something went wrong, that there were misunderstandings. Everything was one’s own fault. Anxiety comes. Bad person has to be punished.” - An AS girl from Sweden
· For fun or attempt at sensory integration. Some on the spectrum are hypo-sensitive to physical pain and may experiment in order to try and produce a sensation.
“When I was younger it was worse I used to pull out my hair, cut myself and crash into everything so that I could feel my body.” - Layla, adult with SID
· Adverse reaction to drugs.
“I was put on Prilosec after a stomach bleed in September. I was supposed to take it until the end of December, but by mid-November, I couldn't tolerate the side-effects any more. It made me SO much more sensitive to sensory input. I always considered my sensory issues to be pretty severe, but when I was on Prilosec, I thought I'd gone to Hell. I've NEVER experienced sensory issues so severe that I started pulling at my hair, hitting myself, but that happened while I was on Prilosec, and although it isn't as constant now, I still have days where I feel like I have bugs crawling all over me and it makes me want to rip my hair out, claw my eyes out, you get the picture.” - Tracey, adult with SID
· Inner voices. Schizo-affective types may harm themselves on the command of inner voices, or as a way of temporarily blanking out the voices by creating a stronger stimuli - pain.
“In my case, the harmful voices start yelling at me to harm myself when I am dealing with some great stress.” - Female HSP/ADD & Schizo-affective adult from USA
By Stephen M. Edelson, Ph.D. Center for the Study of Autism
“Self-injurious behavior often refers to any behavior that can cause tissue damage, such as bruises, redness, and open wounds. The most common forms of these behaviors include head-banging, hand-biting, and excessive scratching or rubbing.
“There are two major sets of theories on why people engage in self-injury - physiological and social. Some of the physiological theories (and suggested treatments) are:
“1. These behaviors release beta-endorphins in the person's brain, which in turn, provides the person with a form of internal pleasure (beta-endorphins are endogenous opiate-like substances in the brain). (Treatment: If a person is given naltrexone, a beta-endorphin inhibitor, self-injury may decrease.)”
My comment: What if that is the only stress release they can find in an otherwise overwhelming or under-stimulating environment? I would be very careful in medicating a sensitive or atypical person as they may be extra sensitive to meds.
“2. Sudden episodes of self-injury may be caused by sub-clinical seizures. Sub-clinical seizures are not typically associated with the characteristic behaviors of conventional seizures, but they are characterized by abnormal EEG patterns. (Treatment: The person should receive an extensive EEG to determine if the self-injury is associated with sub-clinical seizures.)”
“3. Head-banging or ear hitting may be caused by a middle ear infection. (Treatment: The person should be given an extensive ear examination.)”
My comment: Both sound like a good idea.
“4. Some forms of self-injury may be a result of overarousal (such as frustration). Self-injury acts as a release, and thus, lowers arousal. (Treatment: One should try to reduce the person's general arousal level, such as through relaxation/visual imagery therapy, deep pressure, and exercise.)”
My comment: Sounds OK, but why not also change the environment, so as to avoid over-arousal in the first place?
“5. In some cases, self-injury may be a form of self-stimulatory, stereotypic behaviors. That is, they are repetitive, ritualistic behaviors which provide the individual with some form of sensory stimulation or arousal. (Treatment: Person could be given sensory integration therapy to normalize the senses.)”
My comment: Having sensitive senses already is normal if one is a supersensitive individual. Though, in some cases, sensory integration therapy may still be of help.
Some of the social theories explaining these behaviors are:
“1. Some individuals engage in self-injurious behaviors to obtain attention from other people. (Treatment: People in the environment should ignore the person when he/she engages in self-injury; thus, the person will learn that the behavior will not lead to attention.)”
My comment: Or you could find out what the person needs attention for, and perhaps encourage him or her to express their needs in more constructive ways?
“I do find it distressing to see my son (dx HFA) self harm and have taught him other ways to diffuse his frustration/anger; for example he likes to rip newspapers up and he cleans up afterwards too :-) I came up with the idea of him ripping newspaper up after I caught him ripping a book up. I just handed him a newspaper and said if you want to rip something up, rip this up - it seems to have worked. He used to headbang when he was younger, but seemed to grow out of it.” - Julie, adult Aspie from England
“2. Some individuals exhibit self-injury to escape or avoid a task. (Treatment: The person should be asked to complete the task rather than escape the task.)”
My comment: In my opinion, no one has a right to force another human being to do anything against his or her will. If that person will rather hurt him/herself badly, it only shows how much he/she is repulsed by having to do it. For a Highly Sensitive Person or someone with Dyspraxia, even the most simple, ordinary tasks can be overwhelmingly painful or arduous and should not be insisted upon unless absolutely necessary.
“3. Although it has not been discussed in the research literature, there is also the possibility that these behaviors could be related to hypersensitivity to certain sounds in the environment. For example, if a sound bothers an individual, he/she may react by hitting one's head or ears. (Treatment: One may consider trying auditory integration training.)”
My comment: Or one might consider lowering the friggin’ noise? Having sensitive hearing is not necessarily a disorder. Auditory Integration treatment is a very expensive ‘intervention’, based on very questionable theories, and with varying results.
“Basically, there are many reasons why people engage in self-injurious behavior. The best way to determine the reason for the behavior in an individual is to conduct a functional analysis. This involves analyzing what occurs prior to the behavior as well as what happens immediately after the behavior. If one can rule out possible social influences on the behavior, then physiological causes should be investigated.”
My comment: Sounds like a good idea. |
