Cutters

[wannabepsychnurse]

Hi i had a question for all you psych nurses out there! How often do you guys have cutters come into the psych ward? Is it often? or do you hardly ever see them? Thanks!!

wannabespsychnurse!!!!!! :balloons:

[sbic56, BSN, RN]

http://talentdevelop.com/cutting.html

There was a very fine, an elegant pain. In the razor's wake, the skin melted away... then the blood welled up... the chaos in my head spun itself into a silk of silence.

I think this quote I took from this site explains cutting pretty well. Interesting site to check out for insight into the mind of those who cut.

[SillyLilly]

http://talentdevelop.com/cutting.html

I think this quote I took from this site explains cutting pretty well. Interesting site to check out for insight into the mind of those who cut.

i actually used to cut myself for years. i live with the scars now......

no one was there for me. my parents actually grounded me for it! i almost got kicked out of school, and since my mom worked there she was 'soo embarrased'

thats a story in its self, but i have worked through alot of my pain.

i know that if i would have landed in a hospital i would have been very hard to work with. to get me to open up. that is why i do not want to go into psych nursing, and somewhat dread my clinical rotation.

and yes, that quots is good.

[mattsmom81]

Thank you Sbic..that link was helpful..and kudos to those here who have shared their stories. :)

[sbic56, BSN, RN]

i actually used to cut myself for years. i live with the scars now......

no one was there for me. my parents actually grounded me for it! i almost got kicked out of school, and since my mom worked there she was 'soo embarrased'

thats a story in its self, but i have worked through alot of my pain.

i know that if i would have landed in a hospital i would have been very hard to work with. to get me to open up. that is why i do not want to go into psych nursing, and somewhat dread my clinical rotation.

and yes, that quots is good.

I can imagine you may feel some anxiety about your psych rotation, but perhaps you will be pleasantly suprised by the experience, as having been there you have something to offer in that you understand.

[sbic56, BSN, RN]

Thank you Sbic..that link was helpful..and kudos to those here who have shared their stories. :)

YW! I liked that site....there is no better way to understand something than to listen to those who have been there.

[PMHNP10]

I have often wondered if cutting was a frustrated anxiety driven compulsion, or a prelude to suicide attempt?

It can be both, one or neither. If you ask a cutter about their experience, they often say it helps release their emotional pain. This is no different than the alcoholic who drinks or the drug user who abuses--it's a coping mechanism, albeit maladaptive.

Unfortunately, what sometimes happens to cutters (and people who make attempted ODs, etc) is that they accidently nick an artery (or take too many pills), resulting in their demise.

(I am not a psych nurse but am interested in what drives human beings)

It is truly fascinating. I've said this many times before, but in this profession the one worded question we can't/don't ask is "Why?" It's also the question we most want to know. (Wait I'm projecting--I wan't to know "Why?") :)