Friday, 22 February 2013
Sunday, 17 February 2013
Public engagement film launch: 'Hurting to Heal'
Dispelling myths about self-harm and encouraging better understanding is the aim of a new short film ‘Hurting to heal: exploring self-harm and recovery' funded by the 2012 Society's Public Engagement Grants.
'Hurting to Heal' will premier on 1 March at the University of Edinburgh to coincide with International Self-injury Awareness Day.
Produced by HarmLESS Psychotherapy the short film explores the reasons for people engaging in self-harm behaviours, who may be affected by it and what we can do to help.
Maria Naranjo, Educational and Health Services Director of HarmLESS Psychotherapy, said:
“Every year around 170,000 people attend Accident and Emergency Departments across the UK due to self-inflicted injuries. We know this is only the tip of the iceberg as many people never seek medical attention. Self-harm is a taboo subject and people struggle with the idea. Particularly in the caring environment, where the lack of clear protocols and training leave staff feeling ill-prepared to support people who engage in self-harming behaviours. With this film we hope to remove some of the myths around self-harm and engage people at a personal and human level.”
In ‘Hurting to Heal’ Lora Coyle, a self-harmer, takes the viewer on an exploratory journey through the reasons that lead people to engage in self-harming behaviours and how we can offer support.
Maria said: “This film is an introduction to the topic of self-harm and helps to open the conversation around effective support systems for people affected. We want to improve understanding that self-harm is a symptom of psychological distress and not necessarily a precursor to suicide.”
The launch is free to attend and places are still available; please register your interest on their registration website.
‘Hurting to Heal’ was produced by HarmLESS Psychotherapy in collaboration with Choose Life, The University of Edinburgh, Scottish Mental Health Association, Shared Strengths and NHS Lothian with a 2011 BPS Public Engagement Grant. For more information about our Public Engagement Grants please visit the website.
HarmLESS Psychotherapy is a Social Enterprise Mental Health Educational Service founded in 2011. For more information contact info@harmlesspsychotherapy.com
HarmLESS Psychotherapy is a Social Enterprise Mental Health Educational Service founded in 2011. For more information contact info@harmlesspsychotherapy.com
The downside of overprotective parents
Students who have overly controlling parents may be more likely to be depressed. This is the suggestion of newresearch published in Springer's Journal of Child and Family Studies, which showed mums and dads who adopt a 'helicopter' parenting style may be violating their child's need to feel competent and autonomous.
Led by Holly Schiffrin of the University of Mary Washington in the US, the study demonstrated that youngsters with possessive parents tend to be less satisfied with their lives.
The investigation involved an online survey of 297 American undergraduates aged 18 to 23, who were asked to describe the parenting behaviours of their mothers, while the researchers also evaluated the overall life satisfaction of the participants.
It was shown that over-involvement on the part of the parent can lead to negative outcomes for young people, including higher depression and anxiety levels, with people feeling less able to effectively manage their life.
"Parents should keep in mind how developmentally appropriate their involvement is and learn to adjust their parenting style when their children feel that they are hovering too closely," the authors added.
Chartered Psychologist Russell Hurn comments:
"This study may describe how a child’s perception of ‘self changes’ with a lack of suitable support for the development of responsibility and self-regulation. Whilst parents should be aware of their children’s behaviour complete control does not support a child to be independent and instead would promote a loss of self-efficacy and lead to a devaluation of their thoughts, wishes and abilities.
"Over protection may also communicate messages to the child that they cannot be trusted, will always make mistakes and that this is not acceptable. There may then be no opportunity to praise effort and coping strategies. A child may therefore reduce their effort or attempts at managing situations so preventing any possible learning. In a sense you may argue that the safe base which is the goal of good parenting will be something imposed rather than experienced by the child. Emotions are then less likely to be contained by them and not accepted by their parents. The combination of these factors could well lead to a presentation of depression or other mental health problems."
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