Anything that you do to cause yourself pain is potentially self-injury, especially if it damages your body in some way that is visible or lasts 15 minutes or more. It really comes down to what it means for you and how you are using the behavior. If you do it to escape from emotional pain, it very well may be self-injury.
People with eating disorders and dissociative disorders are among the groups that are likely to self-injure. They can go hand in hand.
My self-injury behaviors have included not eating because i like feeling empty/hungry, many passive methods, and also emotional self-injury (giving away animals or things that I loved, because I wanted to hurt myself or felt that I should hurt).
A bigger question is what are you willing to do about it? Are you getting help to work through the feelings and the stuff from your past that makes you want to hurt yourself?
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“We should always pray for help, but we should always listen for inspiration and impression to proceed in ways different from those we may have thought of.”
– John H. Groberg
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