If you think your child is self-harming or hurting themselves, it’s important to get support for your child and your family.
Young people may use self-harm as a way to cope with difficult emotions that they don’t know how to express. As a parent or carer, there are things you can do to help them work through their feelings and find other ways to cope.
If your child is in danger of immediate harm or their life may be at risk, call 999 or visit A&E.
Read this in Welsh/ Darllenwch hwn yn Gymraeg: Beth allaf ei wneud os bydd fy mhlentyn yn hunan-niweidio?
Speak to a person you trust or someone independent about what’s happening. Encourage your child to talk to someone too. You can get support in the following ways:
Make sure your child knows you’re there for them, and they can talk to you about anything. Take some time to understand what they’re going through and why they might want to self-harm. Try to be non-judgemental about the self-harm. It may take some time for things to change, so it’s important to support your child during their journey even when things are difficult.
You can also:
Help your child find ways to cope when they think about self-harming:
You can find more guidance on how to help a child who is self-harming, including stories from parents, at Young Minds.
Mind also has more information on self-harm.