Genetics and self harm

[Mutibann]

So self harm kinda runs in my family. My mom did it when she was a teenager and my older half brother did it. I think my dad might have done it too but he's dead so I can't ask him. Now I do it(well, not for almost a month now). My question is can somebody be genetically predisposed to self harm or is it more of a learned behavior? Just curious

[NightFighter]

No, i don't believe it is due to your genetics.

You can be genetically susceptible to depression which may cause self harm though.

Basically, i think it was a learned behaviour. You know that your role models (mother and possibly father) self harmed so you have (subconsciously?) come to the conclusion that it's an acceptable method to cope. Therefore, you were likely to also try self injury when you got upset.

Would you say you get either positive or negative reinforcement when you self harm?

[wattado]

well idk if self harm is genetic because my cuz he is 2 when he does something bad he will punish himself and try to hurt himself its kind of weird but i dont know if he learned it or he has a mental disability because both is possible because it runs in the fam but i belive it is a learned behavior but depression i think can run in the family

[FullyAlive]

I don't think I'll have children and this is one of my reasons. Its probably scientifically untrue that self harm can run in the family but even so, if my child was to see my scars like said above they might think its an acceptable coping method. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I thought my child had taken up this addiction.
And well depression can run in families so who says self harm can't.
I think also addictive personalities might run in families, so I guess then if you're predisposed to have an addictive personality, then you're more likely to get addicted to whatever coping method you choose.

I guess it won't really ever truly known if you can be genetically be predisposed to self harm because its such a secretive behaviour.

[Love.Hate]

Personally I relate it all to life experiences, characteristics and your upbringing. Yes genetics place a part in mental health problems but I don't believe it to affect self harm alone. I believe it is what that child is exposed to in their life, you see every individual is different and I don't think we can classify it as genetic. Its generalising it too much. however, I do see your point, maybe you were aware of it from a young age and as you knew that's how they once coped so you did the same when you were struggling in life? The same theory goes for alcoholics, if a child sees their parent using the bottle to cope they may be more genetically programmed to see that's how they should behave.

Just a theory, however I'd never let it stop me from having kids.

[Mutibann]

I think also addictive personalities might run in families, so I guess then if you're predisposed to have an addictive personality, then you're more likely to get addicted to whatever coping method you choose.

Yeah that makes sense. I know at least as far back as my great grandparents everyone in my family has been adddicted to something. There are quite a few alcoholics, drug addicts, and smokers in my family.

[georgiamay]

Self harm isn't something that you have, it's how you cope with a problem that you have.

Self harm can't be genetic, but depression, anxiety, addictive personalities and eating disorders can run in families.
I think you can be predisposed to a mental health problem, but the way you deal with it can vary a lot.

My mum never self harmed (that I know of), but she was severly depressed for a long time. She had an eating disorder when she was younger, and there's no way that I could have learned that behaviour from her, because that was before I was born. I suppose I was predisposed to find unhealthy ways to cope with stuff. I was shocked when I found out. I found out after I'd had my disordered eating thingy.

I think coping mechanisms can vary and can't be genetic, but the mental health problem definitely can be.

[Aubrie]

No, i don't believe it is due to your genetics.

You can be genetically susceptible to depression which may cause self harm though.

Basically, i think it was a learned behaviour. You know that your role models (mother and possibly father) self harmed so you have (subconsciously?) come to the conclusion that it's an acceptable method to cope. Therefore, you were likely to also try self injury when you got upset.

Would you say you get either positive or negative reinforcement when you self harm?

It would be negative reinforcement because you're getting rid of the bad feelings by cutting, thus increasing the good response. I know that's kind of confusing because I suppose you could look at it as you're giving (positive reinforcement) yourself cuts to increase good responses. The whole negative vs. positive reinforcement can be confusing.

Anyway, I don't believe that self-harm in itself is genetic. The psychological disorders can be, however. Not every self-harmer has a disorder, though. Of course, if someone is self-harming, they're more likely to have a disorder, but that's not really the point. I'll stop before I go off on all sorts of tangents lol.

[BossHogg]

No I dnt think it genetic at all