Self injury is most likely far more common than most people think. Famous people such as Angelina Jolie, Johnny Depp, and Princess Diana have publicly admitted to engaging in self injury. ³

Currently there are no Canadian statistics, but American studies suggest that up to 1% of people self-injure, with a higher rate of females than males. In Canada, that could be up to 300,000 people or twice the population of Prince Edward Island. ⁴

This statistic is higher in reality, but due to the shameful and secretive nature of self injury, many will never come forward, or receive treatment.

While there is no one type of person who can be defined as a self injurer, many who do self injure share some similar characteristics. Some common characteristics of people who self injure can include:

• strongly dislike themselves
• frequently invalidate themselves
• are hypersensitive to rejection
• are chronically angry, usually at themselves
• tend to suppress their anger
• have high levels of aggressive feelings, which they disapprove of strongly and often suppress or direct inward
• are more impulsive and more lacking in impulse control
• tend to act in accordance with their mood of the moment tend not to plan for the future
• are depressed and suicidal/self-destructive
• suffer chronic anxiety
• tend toward irritability
• do not see themselves as skilled at coping
• do not have a flexible repertoire of coping skills
• do not think they have much control over how/whether they cope with life
• tend to be avoidant
• do not see themselves as empowered
• not able to regulate their emotions well ⁵

Self injury typically starts during puberty or adolescence, and typically lasts 5-10 years, or longer if left untreated.