Today, Casey Scott travels to the Bar W Beef, a cutting-edge beef processing facility located in Nephi, Utah. Built in 2024, Bar-W Beef stands at the forefront of innovation in beef processing, ... Nonsuicidal self-injury, often simply called self-injury, is the act of harming your own body on purpose, such as by cutting or burning yourself.

Understanding the Context

It's usually not meant as a suicide attempt. This type of self-injury is a harmful way to cope with emotional pain, sadness, anger and stress. What drives forms of self-harm like cutting that some teens engage in? Gaining an understanding of why some children harm themselves by cutting their skin, what signs to be aware of, and how to approach the subject can help parents respond if this occurs.

Key Insights

Ross and McKay (1979) categorized self-mutilators into nine groups: cutting, biting, abrading, severing, inserting, burning, ingesting or inhaling, hitting, and constricting. Most of us know about cutting — using a sharp object like a razorblade, knife, or scissors to make marks, cuts, or scratches on one's own body. But cutting is just one form of self-injury. Find out the causes, risk factors, and signs of cutting, what you can do if you discover a loved one is harming themselves, and where to turn for support. Cutting is the most common form of self-injury — more than 80% of people who self-harm choose this method — but it’s not the only one.

Final Thoughts

Cutting is the act of purposely cutting yourself with a sharp object, such as a knife or razor blade. It’s an unhealthy way to relieve emotional pain, sadness, intense frustration, and anger.