Resources

TV, documentaries, podcasts and talk shows

• Doing Translational Research, “Cultivating ‘Broader, Better Human Beings’” (January 22, 2018)
• WCNY Cycle of Health, “Self Harming, Living With HIV, How to be Happy” (July 30, 2015)
• Zinn, M (Director). 2014. Self-inflicted [DVD]. United States (Available from Human Relations Media). Access summary at http://www.monicazinn.com/self-inflicted.html
• inSocialWork Podcast Series (University at Buffalo, School of Social Work) “Episode 95 – Dr. Janis Whitlock: The Cutting Edge: Self-Injurious Behavior in Adolescents and Young Adults” (April 30, 2012)
• “Your Time with Kim Iverson” (January 27, 2010)
• Bare, Ili (Director). 2010. The silent epidemic [DVD]. Australia. (Available from: Beyond production; Northern Pictures). Access summary at: http://www.selfinjury.bctr.cornell.edu/resources.html#tab6
• Good Morning America, “Message Boards Could Be Encouraging Cutting” (May 1, 2006)
• Children’s Health on Ideastream (Cleaveland PBS radio & TV): “The Paradox of Cutting” listen here.
• The Early Show: “Teen Shares Self-Injury Secret“ (June 5, 2006)
• WHYY Voices in the Family, “Price of Privilege” (July 24, 2006)
• 1590 The Connection, “Self-Injury in adolescents” (June 14, 2006)

News articles

• Pattani, Aneri. “Self-harming affects nearly 1 in 5 teens. But we hardly talk about it.” (March 26, 2019)
• Fabian, Renée. “Why Aren’t There More Resources For Adult Self-Injurers?” (March 21, 2017)
• PBS News Hour, “Can Instagram’s new tool really help users who self-harm?” (January 16, 2017)
• TIME Magazine “Teen Depression and Anxiety: Why the Kids Are Not Alright” (October 27, 2016)
• The Ringer, “Tumblr’s Depression Connection” (October 24, 2016)
• Chicago Tribune, “Those who self-injure actually want to feel less pain” (October 9, 2015)
• Vice News, “How Tattoos Can Ease the Emotional Pain of Self-Harm Scars” (S. Solomon, August 21, 2015)
• AEON, “Why self-harm? Cutting brings relief because emotion and pain criss-cross in the brain. Can we untangle the circuits and stop self-harm?” (C. Arnold, October 13, 2014)
• NBC News, Generation stress? How anxiety rules the secret life of teens (A. Pawlowski, September 17, 2014)
• Research Media, Silent epidemic (International Innovation, April 2014)
• Fox News, Cutting and self-harm: Is your kid doing it? (Julie Revelant, March 16, 2014)
• Reuters, Self-injury information available online, but rarely accurate (Andrew M. Seaman, March 27, 2014)
• New York Times, How a college roommate can affect your child (Perri Klass, M.D., February, 24, 2014)
• Wayne Post, Scars of a different battle: Why do people self-harm? (Melody Burri, February 16, 2014)
• Screening for Mental Health, Speaking the soul: Why kids cut and what we can do about it (Janis Whitlock, February, 2014)
• Reuters, Online forums a ‘mixed bag’ for depressed youth (Genevra Pittman, October 30, 2013)
• The Boston Globe, Facing the puzzling urge to self injure (Kay Lazar, March 11, 2013)
• The Florida Sun Sentinel, Increase in self-embedding (Shari Roan, January 7, 2009)
• The New York Times, The growing wave of teenage self-injury (Jane Brody, May 6, 2008)
• Chronicle of Higher Education, Are we facing an epidemic of self-injury? (Joan Brumberg, December 6, 2006)
• Associated Press, 17 Pct. at 2 schools practice self-abuse (Lindsey Tanner, June 5, 2006). Note: This and related articles were picked up by most major news papers in the US including but not limited to NYT, Chicago Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle, Washington Post, Detroit News. Cornell Press Relations estimates a total circulation of 29,512,189.00
• Inside Higher Ed, Self-injury epidemic (Rob Capriccioso, June 5, 2006)
• Reuters, High rate of self-harm seen among college students (Anne Harding, June 8, 2006)
• CBS News, Pros and cons of kids’ web use: Studies show mix of potential benefits, risks when kids go online (Miranda Hitti, May 1, 2006)
• Kansas City Star, Internet sites encourage self-injuring (Karen Uhlenhuth, May 1, 2006)
• MTV News, Dangerous relief: Teens increasingly turn to self-abuse to cope with stress (Shana Leonard, June 13, 2006)

Interviews, Documentary Films, & More

Watch these interviews to hear more from actual CRPSIR interview participants:

Why Self-Injure?

What I’m Taking Away From This Expereince

Responding – Finding Out

Responding – First Conversations

Responding – Advice

Recovery

The Silent Epidemic: This documentary delves into the scientific and socially misunderstood world of self-harm, shedding light on groundbreaking scientific research and offering hope.
Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

CUT: Teens and Self Injury. Watch an interview with the filmmaker Wendy Schneider below. To find out more about how to watch CUT or to purchase a copy please go to the Safe Alternatives website.

Listen to Dr. Janis Whitlock’s talk: “Lessons Learned from Research on Self-injury and Families.”

Resources on treatment:

• TheRavive, is a network of licensed and professional counsellors, therapists, and psychologists who uphold clear, compassionate values in therapy. Theravive’s purpose is to connect you to the right professional, giving you a better direction, new goals, and a clearer understanding of how to get there.
• The Bridge of Central Massachusetts provides compassionate, evidence-based human services for those with mental health challenges, developmental and intellectual disabilities, autism, acquired brain injury, substance use disorders, homelessness and other complex challenges.
• Behavioral Tech LLC trains mental health care providers and treatment teams who work with complex populations to use compassionate, scientifically valid treatments and to implement and evaluate these treatments in their practice setting. They provide information and resources about Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) for providers, clients, parents, researchers, and more, including a therapist directory. and training in DBT.
• Four Winds Hospitals have two locations in Katonah, NY and Saratoga NY. They provide inpatient and outpatient mental health treatment services for children, adolescents and adults, and are leading specialized providers of inpatient psychiatric treatment for children, adolescents and adults in the Northeast.
• SAFE Alternatives® (Self-Abuse Finally Ends) (1-800-366-8288) is a nationally recognized treatment approach, professional network and educational resource base, which is committed to helping achieve an end to self-injurious behavior. S.A.F.E. Focus Group is a self injury support group based off of the S.A.F.E. Alternatives Program. For further information, please e-mail info@selfinjury.com. S.A.F.E. Alternatives also provides information on how to find a therapist to treat self-injury. Also, check out S.A.F.E.‘s informative Youtube videos!
• Mending Fences is a holistic treatment program, available to individuals struggling with dual diagnosis, addiction, depression, anxiety, or those with a history of trauma. A comprehensive treatment program, Mending Fences’ goal is to “treat the whole person, not just the addiction.”
• Talkspace.com: Talkspace is a digital therapy resource, allowing users to engage with a therapist anytime on their smartphone or through the web. It provides “affordable, confidential, and anonymous therapy at the touch of a button.” This can be a great resource for those who feel they do not have the time for in-person therapy appointments or do not have many treatment resources available locally.

Other helpful websites:

• The Mighty’s Guide to Understanding Self-Harm, which was developed with help from expert knowledge from professionals, and surveys from nearly 3,000 people with a history of self-harm to get their experiences.(Overview |For Young People |For Adults |For Parents and Loved Ones |Resources)
• Understanding Compassion Fatigue: An Online Guide from EduMed and Catherine Burger is an in-depth guidebook about compassion fatigue for members of the healthcare community who work with patients. This resource includes a compassion fatigue self-assessment, how to develop a self-care plan, how to avoid secondary traumatic stress, and a full list of additional resources to turn to if you need support.
• Mindframe’s Quick guide for reporting about self-harm is a great guide for anyone working in media to learn how best to report on self-injury, and what to avoid
• Online Counseling Programs’ Ultimate Resource Guide on Mental Health and Education for Kids and Teens compiles lists, articles, guides, videos, and more to help parents, teachers, professionals, and children and teens themselves to assist in social, academic, behavioral, and emotional development.
• This guide from Affordable Colleges Online provides actionable, up-to-date information to help students improve their mental health so that they can perform to their full potential. The guide covers causes of depression, goes over how to get help, describes what colleges can do, and includes many more resources.
• The Crisis Text Line serves young people in any type of crisis, providing them access to free, 24/7, emotional support and information they need via the medium they already use and trust: TEXT. To utilize this resource or read more click here.
• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: If you feel you are in a crisis, whether or not you are thinking about killing yourself, please call the Lifeline. People have called for help with substance abuse, economic worries, relationship and family problems, sexual orientation, illness, getting over abuse, depression, mental and physical illness, and even loneliness. By calling 1-800-273-TALK (8255) you’ll be connected to a skilled, trained counselor at a crisis center in your area, anytime 24/7. There is also the feature to chat with someone from 2pm until 2 am, daily!
• WristBand Resources has compiled a list of Suicide Awareness and Prevention resources and statistics which links to several other helpful websites, fact sheets, and resources
• ChronicleMe (CMe) is a new social media site that will allow you to share details of your life that you may not want to share with 500 of your closest Facebook friends. Whether it is an embarrassing tidbit about yourself or a secret that you just are not ready to share with the world, CMe will serve as a one stop shop for all your emotional needs. With its two distinct online communities, CMe Support and CMe Laugh, CMe will give users the freedom to share everyday thoughts anonymously while only receiving positive reinforcement from like-minded people who may be in the same situation. It‘s a judgment free environment in which users control their anonymity by choosing if and when they reveal themselves to another user. Check it out!
• Effective child therapy is an excellent resource for information on evidence-based treatments for children and adolescents struggling with mental health.
• Psychwire.org is a new social media site for researchers, practitioners and allied professionals of mental health and behavioral science. It is designed to provide opportunities for networking within a supportive forum of researchers & therapists. As an international project, it aims to encourage lively global dialogue and Q & A and to promote sharing of useful resources including research, books, documents and media.
• Loveislouder.com provides support to those feeling mistreated or alone. The project is designed to engage individuals in expressing their feelings and promotes positive thinking, words, and behaviors in communities. Read more about the organization here.
• emotionsanonymous.org “The EA membership is composed of people who come together in weekly meetings for the purpose of working toward recovery from emotional difficulties. EA members are from many walks of life and are of diverse ages, economic status, social and educational backgrounds. The only requirement for membership is a desire to become well emotionally.”
• GetSomeHeadspace: Headspace is a project designed to demystify meditation. Using the wonders of science and technology, we make it easy-to-learn, fun-to-do, and relevant to your everyday life. This is meditation for modern life – simple, scientifically-proven techniques, that you can use every day to experience a healthier and happier mind. The Headspace website goes into the science behind mindfulness and meditation and helps users learn how to use meditation skills to help overcome anxiety, depression, stress, addiction, and more.
• ReachOut.com: This organization provides online resources for youth struggling with mental health. The site gives users the opportunity to build peer support networks through forums and presents extensive information through fact sheets, blogs, and other online tools. Find ReachOut.com’s resources specifically on self injury here.
• Strengthofus.org is an online community providing resources on positive thinking to those struggling with mental health. Users can read blogs, participate in forums, or read and listen to the great content featured on the website.
• Critical Mental Health Resources for College Students: This website is meant to provide college students and young people with quality information on maintaining good mental health and identifying mental health issues.
• SiOS Self-injury Outreach & Support: As part of a collaboration between the University of Guelph and McGill University, we are a non-profit outreach initiative providing information and resources about self-injury to those who self-injure, those who have recovered, and those who want to help.
• Your Life Counts: “Helping Youth & Families To Nurture, Protect & Sustain Their Will To Live…”
• Self Injury Foundation: The mission of the Self Injury Foundation is to provide funding for research, advocacy support and education for self-injurers, their loved ones and the professionals who work with them. We are dedicated to providing the most up to date information and resources available on self-injury.
• The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry is aimed at helping parents and families in understanding emotional, developmental, behavioral and mental disorders affecting children and
• Inspiring Connections is a Canadian organization that provides training and other resource materials to organizations, professionals and laypersons who want to learn more about self-injury and working with people who self-injure.
• The National Mental Health Association has an on-line factsheet about self-injury available here.
• The National Self-Harm Network (UK)
• This guide from Best Colleges.com helps to identify the signs and symptoms of common mental health issues for college students and where and when to seek help. Left untreated, these issues can become debilitating for students, so whether you feel you are experiencing these issues or find yourself concerned for a friend or peer, it is important to take action now.
• To Write Love on Her Arms is a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide. TWLOHA exists to encourage, inform, inspire and also to invest directly into treatment and recovery.
• The Recover website offers help for anyone who wants a solid solution for their suicide issues. Take a suicidal prevention checklist self-test, learn about nutrition, neurotransmitter imbalances, prescription medication, treatment, and more.

Video & Audio Resources:

• Self Injurious Behavior: Free satellite broadcast, October 19, 2006. It is widely believed that the number of youth who intentionally injure their bodies by cutting, burning, or engaging in other forms of mutilation has increased in recent years. Join Dr. Janis Whitlock as she summarizes what we know and don’t know about self-injury as well as recommendations for detection, intervention, and prevention.
• Mental Illness and Mental Health in Adolescence ­, by Janis Whitlock and Karen Schantz. The new edition of Research fACTs and Findings from ACT for Youth provides a brief introduction to mental health in adolescence with a focus on definition, assessment, and mental health disorders, then offers perspective on the role youth development approaches may play in promoting positive mental health and protecting against mental health disorders.
• Purington, A., & Whitlock, J. (August, 2004).  Research facts and findings: Self-injury fact sheet. ACT for Youth Upstate Center for Excellence. Publication of Cornell University, U of Rochester, and New York State Center for School Safety.

Healing Self-injury: A Compassionate Guide for Parents and Other Loved Ones

by Dr. Janis Whitlock and Dr. Elizabeth Lloyd-Richardson “offers strategies for identifying and alleviating sources of distress in children’s lives, improving family communication (particularly around emotions), and seeking professional help. Importantly, it also provides compassionate advice to parents with personal challenges of their own, explaining how these can impact the entire family. The book will help parents partner with their children to identify, build, and use skills that will assist them in recovering from self-injury. Vivid anecdotes drawn from the authors’ extensive in-depth interviews with real families in recovery from self-injury put a human face on what for many families is a distressing and often isolating experience.”

You can purchase Healing Self-Injury from Oxford University Press, or anywhere books are sold

Books:

The following is a list of other useful books and articles on self-injury and it’s treatment. For SIRRR materials check out our Publications page.

• Claes, L., & Muehlenkamp, J. J. (Eds.). (2014). Non-suicidal self-injury in eating disorders: Advancement in etiology and treatment. New York: Springer.
• Selekman, M., & Beyebach, M.(2013). Changing self-destructive habits: Pathways to solutions with couples and families. New York, NY: Routledge.
• Walsh, B. W. (2012). Treating self-injury, second edition: A practical guide. New York: Guilford Press.
• Klonsky, D.E., Muehlenkamp, J.J., Lewis, S.P., & Walsh, B. (2011). Nonsuicidal self-Injury, in the series advances in psychotherapy, evidence based practice. Cambridge, MA: Hogrefe Publishing.
• Gratz, K. & Chapman, A. (2009). Freedom from self-harm: Overcoming self-injury with skills from DBT and other treatments. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger Publications.
• Nock, M.K. (Ed.). (2009). Understanding nonsuicidal self-injury: Origins, assessment, and treatment. Washington D.C: American Psychological Association.
• Selekman, M. D. (2009). The adolescent & young adult self-harming treatment manual: A collaborative strengths-based brief therapy approach. New York: W.W. Norton & Company.
• Miller, D.N. & Brock, S.E. (2009). Identifying, assessing, and treating self-injury at school. New York: Springer.
• Hollander, M. (2008). Helping teens who cut: Understanding and ending self-injury. New York, NY: Guilford Press.
• Nixon, M.K., & Heath, N.L. (Eds.). (2008). Self-injury in youth: The essential guide to assessment and intervention. New York, NY: Taylor & Francis, Inc.
• Selekman, M. D. (2006). Working with self-harming adolescents: A collaborative, strengths-based therapy approach. New York: W. W. Norton & Company.
• Levitt, J.L., Sansone, R.A., & Cohn, L. (Eds.). (2004). Self-harm behavior and eating disorders: Dynamics, assessment and treatment. New York, NY: Brunner- Routledge.
• Lader, W., Conterio, K. & Bloom, J.K. (1998). Bodily harm: The breakthrough healing program for self-injurers. New York, NY: Hyperion.
• Favazza, A. (1996). Bodies under siege: Self-mutilation and body modification in culture and psychiatry. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press.

Articles:

• Hasking, P. A., Heath, N. L., Kaess, M., Lewis, S. P., Plener, P. L., Walsh, B. W., … & Wilson, M. S. (2016). Position paper for guiding response to non-suicidal self-injury in schools. School Psychology International, 37(6), 644-663.
• Berger, E., Hasking, P., & Martin, G. (2017). Adolescents’ perspectives of youth non-suicidal self-injury prevention. Youth & Society, 49 (1), 3-22.
• Kimbrel, N. A., Calhoun, P. S., & Beckham, J. C. (2017). Nonsuicidal self‐injury in men: a serious problem that has been overlooked for too long. World Psychiatry, 16 (1), 108-109.
• Andreasson, K., Krogh, J., Wenneberg, C., Jessen, H.K., Krakauer, K., Gluud, C.,…& Nordentoft, M. (2016). Effectiveness of dialectical behavior therapy versus collaborative assessment and management of suicidality treatment for reduction of self-harm in adults with Borderline Personality traits and disorder – A randomized observer-blinded clinical trial. Depression and anxiety
• Rees, C. S., Hasking, P., Breen, L. J., Lipp, O. V., & Mamotte, C. (2015). mindfulness based cognitive therapy vs group support for self-injury among young people: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial. BMC psychiatry, 15 (1), 154.
• Glenn, C. R., Franklin, J. C., & Nock, M. K. (2015). Evidence-based psychosocial treatments for self-injurious thoughts and behaviors in youth. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 44 (1), 1-29.
• Daine, K., Hawton, K., Singaravelu, V., Stewart, A., Simkin, S., & Montgomery, P., (2013). The power of the web: A systematic review of studies of the influence of the internet on self-harm and suicide in young people. PLoS ONE 8 (10).
• Jarvi, S., Jackson, B., Swenson, L. & Crawford, H. (2013). The impact of social contagion on non-suicidal self-injury: A review of the literature. Archives of Suicide Research, 17, 1- 19.
• Gonzales, A.H., & Bergstrom, L. (2013). Adolescent non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) interventions. Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing, 26, 124-130.
• Groschwitz, R.C., & Plener, P.L. (2012). The neurobiology of non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI): A review. Suicidology Online, 3, 24-32.
• Hamza, C.A., Stewart, S.L. & Willoughby, T. (2012). Examining the link between nonsuicidal self-injury and suicidal behavior: A review of the literature and an integrated model. Clinical Psychology Review, 32, 482-495.
• Muehlenkamp, J.J., & Brausch, A.M. (2012). Body image as a mediator of non-suicidal self-injury in adolescents. Journal of Adolescence, 35 (1), 1-9.
• Lang, C.M. & Sharma-Patel, K. (2011). The relation between childhood maltreatment and self-injury: A review of the literature on conceptualization and intervention. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 12 (1), 23-37.
• Kerr, P.L., Muehlenkamp, J.L., & Turner, J.M. (2010). Nonsuicidal self-injury: A review of current research for family medicine and primary care physicians. Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine, 23 (2), 240-259.
• Jacobson, C.M. & Gould, M. (2007). The epidemiology and phenomenology of non-suicidal self-injurious behavior among adolescents: A critical review of the literature. Archives of Suicide Research, 11, 129-147.
• Klonsky, D.E. (2007). The functions of deliberate self-injury: A review of the evidence. Clinical Psychology Review, 27 (2) 226-239.

Other great resources:

• Stone, D.M., Holland, K.M., Bartholow, B., Crosby, A.E., Davis, S., and Wilkins, N. (2017).
  Preventing Suicide: A Technical Package of Policies, Programs, and Practices . Atlanta, GA: National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
• Self Injurious Behavior: Free satellite broadcast, October 19, 2006. It is widely believed that the number of youth who intentionally injure their bodies by cutting, burning, or engaging in other forms of mutilation has increased in recent years. Join Dr. Janis Whitlock as she summarizes what we know and don’t know about self-injury as well as recommendations for detection, intervention, and prevention.
• Mental Illness and Mental Health in Adolescence ­, by Janis Whitlock and Karen Schantz. The new edition of Research fACTs and Findings from ACT for Youth provides a brief introduction to mental health in adolescence with a focus on definition, assessment, and mental health disorders, then offers perspective on the role youth development approaches may play in promoting positive mental health and protecting against mental health disorders.
• Purington, A., & Whitlock, J. (August, 2004).  Research facts and findings: Self-injury fact sheet. ACT for Youth Upstate Center for Excellence. Publication of Cornell University, U of Rochester, and New York State Center for School Safety.