Teen self-injury on the rise, becoming a trend: Montreal doctor

TORONTO – A Montreal psychiatrist says the number of teens injuring themselves is growing at an alarming rate, and that practices like cutting are becoming a trend.

Dr. Martin Gauthier, psychiatrist-in-chief at The Montreal Children’s Hospital, says deliberate and repeated self-injuries such as cutting, piercing or flesh-biting are far more common in today’s teenagers than they were when he started his practice 25 years ago.

“In the adolescent clinical population, it is about one in two,” says Gauthier in a release. “In the general population, one in six is a conservative figure. It goes up to one in three in some surveys.”

Gauthier says in the past, teens who purposely mutilated themselves were often psychotic, intellectually challenged or autistic, but that’s no longer the case.

He adds that girls are more likely to seek help, but studies show self-mutilation occurs equally in boys and girls across all socioeconomic and racial groups.

Why teens injure themselves

Frequently asked question sections of many mental health sites point out that self-mutilation is rarely a symptom of severe mental illness or a suicide attempt. Instead, Gauthier says the action comes from unresolved or painful issues such as “intense angst,” or as a consequence of bullying or sexual, physical and emotional abuse.

“Most teenagers harm themselves because they are trying to feel better and cannot access other ways to deal with how terrible they feel. Self-mutilation helps to get rid of the tension and to resume normal activities. When repeated, it appears to become more mechanical and quasi addictive,” he says.

Internet forums about self-injury and cutting clubs at school have also become popular, according to Gauthier, who suggests cutting has become trendy. He warns more and more teens are mimicking celebrities and peers who are engaging in the practice.

“Self-mutilation is very contagious. It is obvious on a psychiatric ward as it spreads from one patient to others. The same phenomenon exists obviously in schools and in our society through the examples given by stars, actors, musicians, and other teens.”

Treatment options

Typically adolescents choose arms, legs and the abdomen as targets for harming themselves – all parts of the body that can be hidden beneath clothing. Cutting skin with a razor blade, knife or scissors are the most common forms, but pinching, burning and biting also occur.

While self-mutilation can be a difficult pattern to break, Gauthier emphasizes the importance of contacting a mental health professional.

Canada’s largest mental health and addiction teaching hospital, the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), points to treatments such as medication or therapy and provides a list of options for people who are self-harming or those worried about someone who is self-harming.

Gauthier will be a speaker at the Montreal Children’s Hospital Mini-Med sessions where he will talk on self-injury in teens on Oct. 9 (in English) and Oct. 10 (in French). For more details or to register, visit The Montreal Children’s Hospital site here or call 514-412-4307.