Behaviour
Support Students Who Self-Harm: 8 Ideas That Work
When a young person tells you they're self-harming, respond calmly and helpfully, without the fear of saying the wrong thing.
- 36 minutes
- 10 modules
- 0.5 CPD hours
- Certificate
Members
14 days free, then £70 a year or £7 a month.
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If you need help now
- If someone is in danger, call 999.
- For urgent mental health help, call NHS 111.
- Samaritans: call 116 123, any time.
- Shout: text SHOUT to 85258.
- Childline (for children and young people): 0800 1111.
- Papyrus HOPELINEUK (suicide, under 35s): 0800 068 4141.
What you'll learn
- Listen calmly and without judgement when a young person opens up
- Ask curious questions to understand what their self-harm is doing for them
- Talk about injuries calmly and help them look after wounds safely
- Give care at calm times so you don't reinforce the cycle
- Set tiny, achievable goals that build a sense of I can
About this course
Finding out a young person is hurting themselves can leave you frightened, upset or baffled. Many adults worry most about making it worse, so they say very little, or far too much.
You'll get eight practical ideas, none of which risk making things worse. The first is to listen without judgement: calm on the surface like a swan, even if you're paddling hard underneath. You'll learn to get curious about what the self-harm is doing for them, and to talk calmly about their injuries and help them keep wounds clean. You'll also learn to notice when your kindness at the moment of harm may be feeding the cycle. There's help with your own distress too, and with building small "I can" moments.
If you can't be the one to support them right now, that's all right. What matters is that you pass it on to someone who can.
- For early career teachers, mental health leads and 5 other roles. Post-16, primary, secondary and special.
10 modules
Open in order
- 2 min
Introduction
- 3 min
Wrap up & Resources
- 4 min
Listen without judgement
- 7 min
Look for ‘why’
- 5 min
Don’t be scared of their injuries
- 4 min
Don’t reinforce the cycle
- 4 min
Manage their distress
- 7 min
Manage your distress
- 3 min
Hunt for the good
- 3 min
Create an ‘I can’ culture