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Healing the Hurt Within: Understand Self-Injury and Self-Harm, and Heal the Emotional Wounds By Jan Sutton 2nd edition (Revised and expanded) 560 pages ISBN: 1845280369   Published October 2005 How To Books, Oxford     Foreword by Tracy Alderman Author of The Scarred Soul: Understanding and Ending Self-inflicted Violence    Reviews (this site)   RRP £16.99  Offer available to UK residents Order a personally signed copy of Healing The Hurt Within direct from the author  Cost: £16.00 (inclusive of postage and packing) (Cheques only please) To place your order email Jan Sutton and she will advise you of the address to send your cheque to and details of delivery, etc. Order Healing the Hurt Within from Amazon Click link below to order from Amazon. co.uk or to read reviews on their site Healing the Hurt Within Understand Self-Injury and Self-Harm and heal the emotional wounds Click link below to order from Amazon. com or to read reviews on their site Healing the Hurt Within Understand Self-Injury and Self-Harm and heal the emotional wounds Click text links below to order from Amazon international sites Canada Germany Japan  France  Order Healing the Hurt Within in Australia from  OPEN LEAVES Books The specialist bookseller in Psychotherapy and Mental Health

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Back cover Contents Illustrations Charts Case studies and interviews Reviews of Healing The Hurt Within (1st edition)

From the back cover

It’s a perplexing phenomenon with many names – self-injury, self-harm, self-mutilation, self-inflicted violence, self-cutting, and self-abuse to name some.  Those who come across it – family members, friends, supporters – even many professionals – struggle to understand why people do it, and find the behaviour disturbing and puzzling.  Recent reports imply that it is reaching ‘epidemic proportions,’ particularly among young people.  Furthermore, research suggests that it is a frequent companion to eating disorders, alcohol and drug abuse, depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, borderline personality disorder, and dissociative disorders.  Those caught in its clutches claim that it is difficult to stop due to its highly addictive nature, or say they are reluctant to try because it helps them ‘feel better,’ ‘more in control,’ ‘more real,’ or simply ‘it keeps them alive.’

In this revised, expanded, and compelling second edition, the author steps beyond the wounds and scars of self-injury to listen to the words of women and men who engage in the practice.  She draws on personal testimonies and creative works of individuals trapped in the self-injury and food misuse cycle, those who support them, and people who have stopped self-injuring – as well as on research data and the latest developments in the field. 

It is a book of hope, healing, courage, and enlightenment – not just for those who self-injure or self-harm and their supporters, it is a must-read for everyone concerned with the growing issue of self-injury – that should be all of us.

Foreword by Tracy Alderman

The release of this second edition of HTHW could not be more timely.  Since the release of the first edition in 1999, we have seen more and more people who are hurting and who are hurting themselves.  We have also witnessed an increase in the media attention focused on self-injury; media attention which sometimes sensationalizes this behavior at the cost of accuracy.  If we were to believe much of what the media presents, there is a self-injury epidemic infecting our youth, for which there is no cure or prevention (or cause, in many cases).  With PR like this, no wonder people react poorly when they hear about self-injury!  In HTHW, Jan has done an outstanding job of correcting the media misinformation and showing self-injury for what it is: a method of coping for people who are in emotional distress.  Jan clarifies many of the myths and misconceptions surrounding this behavior, helping to reduce the stigma attached to self-injury.

Drawing from her decades of experience as a counselor, trainer, and author, Jan utilizes a variety of sources of information to assist in reinforcing her points.  In this book you will read some of the most current research from noted experts in the field of self-injury.  Also, the case studies and session transcripts that Jan presents will keep you mesmerized.  These courageous individuals allow you to join them in their difficult journeys from hurting and self-injury to healing and health.  Finally, Jan lets those who are self-injuring speak for themselves, devoting an entire section to their creative works. 

Not being one to shy away from controversial issues, Jan tackles the difficult topic of recovered versus “false” memories.  In HTHW, Jan clarifies the way in which self-injury, dissociation, and recovered memories are intertwined, leading to the return of traumatic memories in later life.  You’ll also see the traumatic effects of rediscovering these memories only to be told by a mental health professional that they’re “false” or created.  Jan also provides strategies for mental health workers to ensure that they work effectively with their clients so as to not risk allegations of creating “false” memories.

Amazingly enough, many people still view self-injury as the same thing as suicide.  While self-injury is usually done to help a person cope and get through a difficult situation (a life-sustaining behavior), suicide is performed as a way of ending life.  Although this would seem clear enough, I can’t tell you the number of professionals that are unaware of this distinction.  Jan helps to allay this confusion and distinguish the differences between these two behaviors.  Additionally, Jan provides a comprehensive list of self-harming behaviors and presents a viable definition of self-harm. 

HTHW is a book for anyone who has ever dealt with self-injury on any level or even wondered about it.  The inclusion of an enormous resource section, tips on healing, and even strategies for therapists to implement, makes this a truly comprehensive and useful book.  But perhaps the most important function of HTHW is that it offers hope and help to those who are hurting. 

Tracy Alderman, Ph.D.

Author of The Scarred Soul: Understanding and Ending Self-Inflicted Violence

Co-Author of Amongst Ourselves:  A Self-Help Guide to Living with Dissociative Identity Disorder

 

Contents

Cautions, disclaimer, and notes                                                  

Foreword, Tracy Alderman                                                           

Acknowledgements                                                                      

Preface

Illustrations, case studies, and interviews                                                                                                                                         

1. Exploring self-harming behaviour                                          

2. Piecing together the puzzle of self-injury 

3. Getting to the heart of the matter                                

4. The cycle of self-injury, the role of dissociation in the cycle, and the eight Cs of self-injury

5. Confusion in terminology and controversy in the media          

6. Helping and healing                                                              

7. Heal thyself and helpful responses                                         

8. Eating distress                                                                      

9. Creative works by contributors

Appendix 1	DSM-IV-TR criteria for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
	Disorders of Extreme Stress Not Otherwise Specified (DESNOS): Proposed Criteria
	DSM-IV-TR criteria for Depersonalization Disorder
	DSM-IV-TR criteria Borderline Personality disorder (BPD)
Appendix 2	Therapeutic precautions to help prevent false memory allegations
Appendix 3	Guidelines for treating Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) and dissociation checklists, & diagnostic tools
Appendix 4	Self-injury monitoring charts and two pathways to self-injury diagram
Appendix 5	Self-harm: An examination of antecedent and maintenance factors. Summary of a 2002 study of 325 people that self-harm
Resources
Further reading
References
Subject index
Author, organisation, and contributor index

Illustrations, charts, case studies and interviews

Chapter 1

1. A comprehensive inventory of self-harming behaviours 

2.  Summary of the definitions of self-harm

 Chapter 2

3. The repetitive cycle of self-injury

4. An overview of methods used to self-harm reported by participants

5. Age of onset

6. Duration of self-injury

7. Areas of the body harmed

8. The legacy of child sexual abuse by Sian

9. Child/Woman by Sheelah

10. An overview of the research data

11. Summary of disadvantages, causal factors, and functions identified from the young peoples' comments                             

Chapter 3

12. Examples of physical abuse and the range of severity  

13. Examples of emotional abuse 

14. Picture by Erin 

15. Lifting the secrecy cloud by Sheelah 

16. Causal factors for self-injury identified from the research 

Chapter 4

17. The cycle of self-injury

18. The five dissociative disorders listed in DSM-IV-TR 

19. Untitled by Sheelah 

20. S-elves portrait by Sheelah 

21. Dissociative experiences prior to most recent episode of self-injury 

22. Depersonalisation experiences by Sheelah

23. The eight Cs of self-injury        

Chapter 5

25. Prevalence estimates for self-harm (self-poisoning and self-injury) 

26. The wide variety of terms used to describe the act of hurting oneself 

27. Classifying self-injurious behaviours 

28. An overview of diagnostic labels assigned to participants in the ongoing research 

29. Differences between substance misuse and self-injury     

Chapter 6

30.  Dignity by Sheelah 

Chapter 7

31. Self-injury trigger and alternatives monitoring chart (example 1)

32. Self-injury trigger and alternatives monitoring chart (example 2)

33. Do’s and don’ts of anger, and insightful quotes

34. A collection of healing tips

35. Advantages and disadvantages of belonging to a survivor run group

Chapter 8

36. "What I see" by Rachel J.

37. Eating distress: Causal factors, feelings and functions

38. What helps and hinders recovery from eating distress 

39. Helpful hints offered by participants; and what they would like to see more of in the future  

Chapter 9

40. Fragmented by Erin 

41. A storm in the eye by Linelle

Appendix 4

42. Two common pathways to self-injury 

Appendix 5

43. Research study: Part 1:  About participants' self-harm

44. Research study: Part II:  Significant events

Charts

Appendix 4

1. Feelings and emotions identified before and after self-injury

2. Before and after self-injury: feelings and emotions monitoring chart

3. The cycle of self-injury monitoring chart

4. Self-injury triggers and alternatives monitoring chart 

5. Sample monthly self-injury monitoring chart

Case studies and interviews

Chapter 1 (composite case studies)

1. Della

2. Karen

3. Sarah

4. Tina

5. Paul

Chapter 3

6. Angie and Jenny (hypothetical)

7. Linelle (real-life) 

8. Jill (1) (real-life) 

9. Jill (2) (real-life) 

10. Linda (real-life)

11. Tacita (real-life)

An interview with Sharon                                                              

Chapter 4

12. Stephanie (real-life)                                                                         

An interview with Erin                                                                     

Chapter 6

13. Jill (1) (real-life)                                                                                 

Chapter 8

14. Caroline (real-life)

15. Juliet (real-life)                                                                                     

About the author

Jan Sutton is an experienced counsellor, trainer, and author of several books covering self-harm, counselling skills, and stress management. Passionate about the subject of self-injury, she has devoted many years to studying the phenomenon. She also maintains SIARI (Self-Injury and Related Issues),

the largest self-injury resource on the web.