TY - JOUR T1 - Self-harm in young people: a challenge for general practice JF - British Journal of General Practice JO - Br J Gen Pract SP - 542 LP - 543 DO - 10.3399/bjgp17X693545 VL - 67 IS - 665 AU - Di Bailey AU - Nicola Wright AU - Linda Kemp Y1 - 2017/12/01 UR - http://bjgp.org/content/67/665/542.abstract N2 - Self-harm is increasingly common in adolescence, with reported prevalence rates in the UK varying from 68%1 to 10%.2 Though frequently low risk and transient, in some young people the behaviour can persist into adulthood and/or become life threatening. Although GPs regard the identification and support of young people who self-harm as part of their role,3 there are particular challenges with this as self-harm is one of the most complex mental health issues with which young people present. These challenges broadly relate to understanding young people’s self-harm and talking about it with them in short, time-limited consultations. Additional dilemmas surround recording self-harm and how to intervene in ways that help.Self-harm encompasses behaviours that young people do to hurt themselves, such as self-cutting, self-burning, and ingesting toxic substances or objects.Young people who present with self-harm to primary care are a heterogeneous population, which includes a minority who are intent on ending their own life4 but who are not easily distinguishable in their help-seeking behaviour from the majority whose self-harm is reported as an attempt at self-help, a coping strategy ‘that they wished they did not need and might someday be able to quit’.5The relationship between stressful life events and common mental health problems such as depression and anxiety for those of any age is well documented, and for young people such stressful life events need to be understood in the context of the inevitable developmental milestones of growing up. Young people often report that their self-harm helps them to cope with overwhelming distress … ER -