title: "Knowing that I'm not alone": client perspectives on counselling for self-injury.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Self-injury is an increasingly common phenomenon among clinical and non-clinical populations. Health care providers generally recommend behavioural interventions that address coping skills for people who self-injure despite a lack of a consistent evidence base about their effectiveness. There is limited understanding about experiences of counselling for self-injury from the perspectives of clients.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To understand clients' experiences of counselling for self-injury.
  
  
  METHODS
  Ten interviews were conducted, audio-recorded and transcribed. Data were analysed using Grounded Theory (GT).
  
  
  RESULTS
  One central category, "Developing a healing reconnection with self and others" and four categories: (i) Building trust; (ii) seeing beyond the cutting; (iii) human contact and (iv) integrating experiences.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Overcoming self-injury is possible within the context of a trusting and accepting therapeutic relationship. Participants perceived counselling to be helpful when counsellors were willing to work with underlying issues rather than focus primarily on the cessation of self-injury. Counsellors and mental health practitioners must look beyond the behaviour to meet with the person and facilitate the development of a therapeutic relationship, which promotes a healing reconnection with self and others.
authors.affiliation: a School of Communication, Ulster University, Jordanstown Campus , Newtownabbey , Northern Ireland .
authors.forename: Maggie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Long
authors.affiliation: b School of Sociology and Applied Social Studies, Ulster University , Magee Campus , Derry , Northern Ireland , and.
authors.forename: Roger
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Manktelow
authors.affiliation: c School of Psychology, Ulster University , Magee Campus , Derry , Northern Ireland.
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tracey
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D001294:Attitude to Health; D003376:Counseling; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D036301:Qualitative Research; D016728:Self-Injurious Behavior / Q000628:therapy*; D035502:Trust
keywords: Self-injury; counselling; qualitative research; service user