It may even be hard for some to actually initiate cutting, but they often do because they know the relief that will follow. For some self-harmers this relief is primarily psychological while for others this feeling of relief comes from the beta endorphins released in the brain. Endorphins are endogenous opioids that are released in response to physical injury, acting as natural painkillers and inducing pleasant feelings, and in response to self-harm would act to reduce tension and emotional distress. Many self-harmers report feeling very little to no pain while self-harming and, for some, deliberate self-harm may become a means of seeking pleasure. As a coping mechanism, self-harm can become psychologically addictive because, to the self-harmer, it works; it enables them to deal with intense stress in the current moment. The patterns sometimes created by it, such as specific time intervals between acts of self-harm, can also create a behavioral pattern that can result in a wanting or craving to fulfill thoughts of self-harm. Autonomic nervous system
Emotional pain activates the same regions of the brain as physical pain, so emotional stress can be a significantly intolerable state for some people. Some of this is environmental and some of this is due to physiological differences in responding. The autonomic nervous system is composed of two components: the sympathetic nervous system controls arousal and physical activation (e.g., the fight-or-flight response) and the parasympathetic nervous system controls physical processes that are automatic (e.g., saliva production).
Self-harm also occurs frequently in inmates who are placed in solitary confinement. History
Self-harm was, and in some cases continues to be, a ritual practice in many cultures and religions. The Maya priesthood performed auto-sacrifice by cutting and piercing their bodies in order to draw blood. A reference to the priests of Baal "cutting themselves with blades until blood flowed" can be found in the Hebrew Bible. However, in Judaism, such self-harm is forbidden under Mosaic law. It occurred in ancient Canaanite mourning rituals, as described in the Ras Shamra tablets. Self-harm is practized in Hinduism by the ascetics known as sadhus. In Catholicism it is known as mortification of the flesh. Some branches of Islam mark the Day of Ashura, the commemoration of the martyrdom of Imam Hussein, with a ritual of self-flagellation, using chains and swords.Dueling scars such as those acquired through academic fencing at certain traditional German universities are an early example of scarification in European society. Sometimes, students who did not fence would scar themselves with razors in imitation.Constance Lytton, a prominent suffragette, used a stint in Holloway Prison during March 1909 to mutilate her body. Her plan was to carve Votes for Women from her breast to her cheek, so that it would always be visible. But after completing the V on her breast and ribs she requested sterile dressings to avoid blood poisoning, and her plan was aborted by the authorities. She wrote of this in her memoir Prisons and Prisoners.