Does scratching count as self harm if I don't bleed?
280 Answers
Last Updated: 11/20/2022 at 4:23pm
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Jennifer Patterson, LMFT
Art Therapist
Life can be messy. Sometimes you need a little support to make your way through it. I love to help guide people through their challenges & to find the beauty in our messes.
Top Rated Answers
Anonymous
January 20th, 2016 12:14pm
It is count as self harm....It is because you are trying to hurt yourself...If u bleed or not its not a question as the intention is to hurt yourself .
Yes, it is still harming your body. Determining whether you bleed is still harmful. If it is affecting your body, if it hurts, etc. Then it is self harm. You are doing it to yourself, it is still harming your body. If you struggle with any form of self harm- please seek help. Best of wishes. 😊
Yes it does, because you are still causing physical harm to your body even though you dont bleed from it.
Anonymous
January 21st, 2016 11:06pm
If you are scratching as a means of a source for emotional relief it can lead to self harm, regardless if you bleed or not.
Anonymous
January 22nd, 2016 12:31am
Yes. Even though you aren't bleeding, you are still causing harm to yourself. These things can become addicting and it could lead to worse problems.
Anonymous
January 22nd, 2016 10:03pm
It does.
All kinds of intentionally causing harm to oneself is considered self-harm, regardless of how it's done or whether there's blood drawn or there are marks - there is no point on a scale to reach. To say that would be to invalidate your pain.
Kind of. You're scratching yourself to feel the pain or for whatever reason. Not for an itch. It counts as self harm.
Yes, it does. It is still a form of hurting yourself. Any action where you deliberately hurt yourself is considered self harm.
I believe so. If you are scratching yourself, even if its not bleeding, or its only small, because you want to hurt yourself, is self harm. Doing anything purposely to harm yourself, is "self harm" hence the name.
Any form of self-harm where an individual is intentionally hurting themself is considered self-harm whether blood or not.
yes, it does, harming yourself in any way such as burning, cutting etc. is self-harm even if it is not deep or bleeding
Yes it does. Anything that is harmful to yourself counts as self harm, even if it doesn't leave visible scars.
Anonymous
February 6th, 2016 8:27pm
It depends. If you are just scratching an itch, no. But if you are purposefully doing it, then yes. I scratch sometimes, and even if it doesn't bleed, it still counts.
Anonymous
February 6th, 2016 9:11pm
Self harm is usually not exactly about the type of harm but the reason and what you get of doing it. It's sometimes categorized as an addiction as the brain releases endorphins. If you want to talk some more about it please message some of the 7cup listeners :)
If you are scratching to cause pain to yourself, then yes, i believe it is considered as self harm.
Self harm is not defined as "bleeding," it's just anything you do with the intention of harming yourself. I know I scratch myself until I bleed sometimes, and that isn't self harm because I'm doing it genuinely because I'm itchy. However, if my intent was to harm myself, then it is self harm.
Doing anything purposely to hurt your body would count as self harm. Unless of course it is for a reason that you need to ie, it itches or you have a medical condition etc.
Anonymous
February 7th, 2016 6:32pm
Yes. It does. You are still hurting yourself, hence self-harm. If you ever feel like self harming, please talk to someone you can trust or anyone here at 7 cups.
Anonymous
February 10th, 2016 2:46am
I would consider this as a yes simply because you still physically and purposely scratched yourself. If you felt sad, depressed, unhappy, or lonely and scratched yourself purposely, then I would definitely count that as a yes.
Yes. Self harm is purposefully hurting yourself whether that causes bleeding or not. And scratching is still making a mark to your body, purposefully.
It depends on the reason why you're scratching. If it's just an itch no it' doesn't count as self harm, however if you're scratching intentionally on a daily basis and do not have a medical issue. This counts as self harm.
Then ask yourself, "what is your intention in scratching yourself in the first place?" The question of self-harm or not comes from the intention within you.
Anything which brings harm to your body that is self-inflicted would count as self-harm. :) If you ever feel down just know you have people to support you!
Anonymous
March 10th, 2016 6:39am
yes if your harming YOURSELF in any way its self harm
Yes it does, if you have the intent to harm. Any form of self injury or self punishment is a serious, and the seriousness and importantness of your feelings is not measurable by how serious of an injury.
Anonymous
March 24th, 2016 9:14am
Scratching does count as self harm as you are causing yourself harm and are damaging the skin tissue
Yes. You are harming yourself. That is what self harm is. You are hurting the most important thing. Yourself.
Self-harm is intentionally inflicted harm on oneself. Using that definition I believe that, yes, it would be self harm.
Anonymous
March 26th, 2016 8:53am
Self harm is something that hurts mentally, emotionally, or physically. Whether or not it bleeds is not a defining reason to self harm.
anything that cause you pain counts as self-harm. It doesn't matter if it's mental pain or physical even if it's just a scratch.
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