Obsessive
Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and Self Injury
(SI)
Frequently seen in victims of rape and sexual assault.
OCD can involve repetitive thoughts or ritual behaviours
(sometimes with food or cleaning).
A related topic is self
injury (SI).
Many victims of rape cut or hurt themselves
(you are not alone). The sites below list coping mechanisms to
stop self injury.
ocd international web site
The Obsessive-Compulsive
Foundation (OCF), with more than 10,000 members, is an
international not-for-profit organization composed of people
with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and related
disorders, their families, friends, professionals and other
concerned individuals.
Founded by a group of individuals
with OCD in 1986, the mission of the OCF is to educate the
public and professional communities about OCD and related
disorders; to provide assistance to individuals with OCD and
related disorders, their family and friends; and to support
research into the causes and effective treatments of OCD and
related disorders.
There is no shame here. If you cause physical harm
to your body in order to deal with overwhelming feelings, know
that you have nothing to be ashamed of. It's likely that
you're keeping yourself alive and maintaining psychological
integrity with the only tool you have right now. It's a crude
and ultimately self-destructive tool, but it works; you get
relief from the overwhelming pain/fear/anxiety in your life.
The prospect of giving it up may be unthinkable, which makes
sense; you may not realize that self-harm isn't the only or
even best coping method around.
This site has very good information on how to stop self
injuring in an emergency. Some examples are drawing on
the skin in red ink and holding an ice cube in your
fist.