Joel Hendon

Study Shows Self-Harm To Be Common Among Teenagers With Implications


Posted: Saturday, November 19, 2011

by Joel Hendon
http://hebronics.org/index.html

A scientific study in Australia of 2,000 adolescents, covering a period of fifteen years shows that one teenager out of 12 will self harm before adulthood. The most common methods of self harm was cutting or burning themselves. Some of these acts occurred only once or twice but others, numerous times.

This study showed that anxiety, depression, excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages, also cigarette smoking and cannabis use, were associated with adolescent self harm.

The Lancet study findings have important implications for the treatment of mental health issues and prevention of suicide in young adults. (BBC Health News 11-17-2011)

Most of these cases will resolve themselves before adulthood, but about 10% of them extend on for years and appear to result in suicide by a higher percentage than among those who never were afflicted by the disorder.

Marjorie Wallace, chief executive of the mental health charity SANE, advises that no one should think that self harm is just a phase that young people will grow out of, simply for the reason that 90% do. It is a risk that should be helped rather than dismissed.

Because of the association between self-harm and suicide, the researchers suggest treating common teenage mental health problems could be part of an "important and hitherto unrecognised component" of preventing suicide in adults. "Self-harm is one of the most significant predictors of completed suicide, " a lead author, Dr Paul Moran, of King's College London, said. (Ibid)

Professor Keith Hawton, Director of the Center for Suicide Research, University of Oxford reported that 50% - 60% of suicides were by people who had a history of self harm.

With the statistics that only one in twelve have the self-harm disorder as an adolescent, then considering the fact that all suicides are from 50-60 percent from those numbers, does indeed show a strong association.

Professor Hawton added that, of the one in twelve, almost 10% of the youths committing self harm, they estimated that about one in eight of those were hospitalized.

"Though a focus on hospital management is crucial, what we should perhaps be thinking more of is the management of self-harm at a community level, particularly how schools respond and how families can be helped to respond," he said. (Ibid)

Sue Minto, head of Childline, reportedly dealt with 30,000 contacts with children last year concerning self harm, suicide and depression. She also advised that it is crucial to learn what drives any child to take such drastic action. That it must be something which causes the child to be very unhappy or frightened which will cause any person to do such harm to themselves, and in extreme cases, to take their own life.
Author Biography: Joel Hendon was born near Gadsden Alabama. He attended public schools in Cherokee County, Alabama and after serving a tour of duty in the U.S. Army during the Korean War, attended Jacksonville State University, majoring in Business Administration. He became a Christian in 1948, and although he followed secular work as a career and retired from Allied Signal Aerospace, he is an avid student of the Holy Bible and related works as well as biblical history. He has an extensive website of conservative religious and political articles.http://hebronics.org/index.html

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