by Julia Purrinos de Oliveira
Content warning
This blog post discusses self-harm and suicide. If you find these topics triggering, please seek help and support. You can find sources of support on nhs.uk and mind.org.uk
Introduction
Let’s begin by thinking about a couple of questions. When you hear the words self-harm, what do you think of? How do the words make you feel? For many people, self-harm is difficult to talk about; there is immense stigma and ill-rooted misconceptions that surround the topic. I first suggested doing this campaign to the Union’s Mental Health Officer, Aglaia, when I noticed the ongoing stigma at Imperial - no one ever talks about self-harm. While on a night out, someone I am close to was being made fun of for their self-harm scars. The purpose of this campaign is to create an open discussion about self-harm without judgment and to educate those who have never been taught about the topic.
About me
I started experiencing mental health issues, and, as a result, self-harm, at a young age. I was born and raised here in London but grew up in a very conservative, Catholic household with family members from Spain and Brazil. Growing up queer with undiagnosed ADHD, I was always the odd one out – both at home and at school. I always felt as though there was something wrong with me. From my teenage-years I hid my queer identity and the struggles I was experiencing with my mental health, almost developing an alter-ego in an attempt to “align my views” with those of my family and classmates. This was worsened by generational trauma passed down to me due to my family’s hard upbringing. The combination of all these things started to manifest as depression, and hence self-harming behaviours. It was the only thing I felt I could control since I wasn’t ‘allowed’ to have control over who I was. It brought me a sense of relief and distraction when I was distressed, but quickly turned to shame when I had to hide it. This promoted a vicious cycle that led to me isolating myself further from friends and family to hide what I had been doing to cope.
Stigma and misconceptions surrounding self-harm
I am proud to say that I am now in a position where I have overcome my struggle with self-harm and have a healthier hold of my mental health issues. Because of this, I can now see that the lack of open discussion and the many misconceptions is what worsened the shame I once felt. Self-harm is a lot more common than you think with around 1 in 4 females and 1 in 10 males between the ages of 16-24 having self-harmed at some point in their lives (NICE, 2020). Most often self-harm isn’t a suicide attempt but instead the opposite; a way to cope with difficult feelings instead of giving up. Self-harm can take a variety of forms and is any form of self-injury. It is never okay to accuse someone of self-harming for ‘attention’; the immense shame often causes people to hide their wounds, not flaunt them in front of others.
LGBTQ+ Identity
As a queer student that used to struggle with their identity, I would like to highlight the disproportionately high rates of self-harming behaviours within the LGBTQ+ community.
- The number of LGBT youth who self-harm is more than double that of their heterosexual counterparts (American Public Health Association Study).
- More than a third of trans people (35%) have self-harmed in the last year (Stonewall Health report, 2017).
- More than four in five trans young people have self-harmed at some point compared to one in ten young people in general (House of Commons: Health & Social Care & LGBT Communities, 2019)
- LGBT+ people of all identities who self-harmed also spoke of self-harm as a form of release from their feelings of anxiety, turmoil or overwhelm (Health needs assessment of LGBT+ people, 2022).
Support at Imperial and Beyond
My positive experience of the self-harm and mental health support available at Imperial contributed to me getting better this year. The support I used included the Disability Advisory Service, UMO mental health mentors hired by the College, Imperial College Health Centre, and my departmental tutors. I wouldn’t have been able to be as far as I am through my degree without this help from the College. I urge anyone struggling to get in contact with any of the services in the campaign Link Tree (www.linktr.ee/shcampaign).
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank Aglaia (ICU’s Mental Health Officer), Sophie (L&C Coordinator), Avi (ICU’s LGBTQ+ Officer) and Andreea (ICU’s Deputy President - Welfare) for their help and support throughout this campaign.