"Is this self harm?"

[Gidig]

Many people ask "Is this self harm?" with various scenarios they're dealing with on a daily basis. I hope to make this clear what self harm is, and what is considered self harm, and what's not.

The definition of self harm is:
"Self-injury, self-inflicted violence, self-injurious behavior or self-mutilation is defined as a deliberate, intentional injury to one’s own body that causes tissue damage or leaves marks for more than a few minutes which is done to cope with an overwhelming or distressing situation."

Anything you do to physically hurt yourself in order help yourself cope with a situation is self harm.

Things considered self harm:
-Cutting
-Burning
-Branding (Taking hot objects and putting them on your skin)
-Picking at your skin
-Scratching
-Taking off scabs/Picking at old wounds
-Pulling out hair
-Hitting
-Bone breaking
-Biting
-Multiple piercings/tattoos (Can be self harm if done for the pain)
-Drinking harmful chemicals (Just to harm body)
-Smoking/drugs (Just to harm body)

And this isn't even a full list. If you are doing any of those things, you should ask yourself if you're doing it just for the pain, or to make yourself feel better. If you are, it's probably self harm.

If you do find something you're doing is self harming, you should see a professional, such as a doctor, a therapist, a psychiatrist, or someone similar who can help you. People will understand, though not everyone will, professionals are trained to deal with situations like yours. They're there to help.

Source:
http://www.helpguide.org/mental/self_injury.htm