For me, it's all about anger.

I cut when I feel absolute amounts of rage that I don't know what to do with. I can become very violent and slip into a psychotic episode, easily. So, I think I developed the behaviour of cutting to stop myself from that. Take all that anger out on myself rather than taking it out on anyone else. Rather than punching a hole through the wall, I slice into my skin. The angrier I am, the deeper and bigger I cut.

I haven't cut in a few years. I'm trying to acknowledge my anger, validate it, and talk myself through it. But sometimes that compulsive habit of reaching for a blade is still fighting me.