Self Injurious Behavior
The Silent Suffering…
If the statistics are right then within the walls of our churches… sitting in our youth ministries … there is a group I call “the silent suffering.” They are the ones whose pain, self-image, peer pressure or perspective has camouflaged the truth. They are deceived and have believed a lie.
The narratives of their lives are written in their own blood, vomit, self-mutilation and inhibitions. I have had some teens tell me their story because I point blank asked and others volunteered without any provocation. I have recorded some of my dialogue with “the silent suffering” as an effort to awaken our consciousness to their pain.
How long have you been cutting?
4 years! (age 15)
So why do you cut yourself?
The blood flowing releases my pain…
Do you think you look anorexic?
No…of course not … I am not even thin enough … (age 17)
Do you realize that purging is destroying your body?
I don’t know if I believe that but I do know that I am too fat.
Aren’t you worried about infection?
No, I sterilize all the objects I embed in myself … (age 16)
So how many objects do you have embedded in your body?
Nine…but I am going to stop at ten.
Do you ever worry about injuring yourself permanently?
Naw …what I do is no more dangerous that driving in my city… (age 18)
What is the craziest stunt you ever did?
When my friend and I were swapping hits with metal chairs…dude…I got a wicked concussion!
Self-injurious behavior is an epidemic today with teens and it is not just the ones “out there”; they are also populating our youth groups. I consistently talk to Student Ministry Pastors who are dealing with this first hand; this is not a new concept. We need to raise awareness of the issue. We also need to help students find their peace and identity in Christ rather than in their pain.
Next week, November 15-19, 2011, I along with several other bloggers will be addressing the topic of Self-Injurious Behavior. We will deal with a variety of topics such as, cutting, anorexia, embedding, burning and several others. We will deal with the causes as well as giving some Biblical and practical input on the topics.
Here are the blogs to watch. You might want to RSS them so you do not miss any of the content. I speak for all of us when I say that we would invite any dialogue or input from you on this topic.
