Adolescent Boys & Girls Depression Stress Cutting

By Craig Rogers

Adolescent boys and girls with depression use cutting as a stress release.  Basically, a very scary and ineffective way of relieving stress.  Cutting is also a new fad and adolescent boys and girls "cut" for attention.  Regardless of why they cut, for a parent it can be one of the most daunting issues they have every faced.

Adolescent boys and girls can have mental, emotional, and behavioral problems that are real, painful, and costly. Recently, boys and girls with depression issues have used cutting as a way of coping with their depression. Depression is a real problems, often referred to as "mood disorders," are sources of stress for boys and girls and their families, schools, and communities.

A new disorder called "cutting"

The number of young people and their families who are affected by mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders such as depression is significant. The recently-released draft of the next edition of the DSM includes a new diagnosis: Non-Suicidal Self-Injury, or NSSI.  This term describes "cutting".

Adolescent boys and girls who cut do so because they are stressed, depressed, and they are hiding their problems.  They don't want people to find out. They wear long sleeves to cover the cuts on their wrists, arms, thighs or stomach.  They use razor blades or other sharp instruments.  They will also burn themselves.  The behavior can become compulsive and boys and girls can actually become addicted to the behavior.  Some adolescents report that they experience a rush or a high during cutting.