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Tuesday, March 03, 2009
Rebecca Hagelin :: Townhall.com Columnist
Horrifying Trend Hits Young Women
by Rebecca Hagelin
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Julia is a fairly typical 16-year-old girl: she is crazy about boys, concerned about being fashionable, doesn't appreciate homework, loves pizza - and she "cuts".

For those who aren't familiar with the term - and whose imaginations might be thinking the worst about what it means to "cut" - I'm afraid I only have very sad news: "cutting" means you take a knife or razor and use it to actually dig into your own flesh.

This barbaric practice is common among today's precious teen women. Some school counselors estimate that the majority of middle and high school aged girls have engaged in such self-mutilation.

When I first heard about the bizarre behavior I must admit that I assumed it was rare, only done by a few girls with severe mental issues who dress in black Goth clothes accented by equally black eye shadow and studded lips. Yes, many of these girls who appear to be troubled do cut - but so do many of the young women who look like "the girl next door".

Why on earth do our little girls maim themselves? Much of it comes as a result of the hardness that often follows a severely broken heart. Some have grown so numb to the onslaught of abuse and emotional pain that they inflict intense physical pain on their bodies and watch their own blood flow to simply remind themselves that they are alive. Others do it in order to build their immunity to pain in general - they have to find a way to distract themselves from the ever-growing, gut-wrenching emotional trauma over their broken families. Continued...

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About The Author
Rebecca Hagelin is a public speaker on the family and culture and the author of the new best seller, 30 Ways in 30 Days to Save Your Family.
 
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you don't know me
pro from dover, mother of 4:
The issue before us is cutting. Self mutilation.

Rather than provide something helpful to the discussion. Like why it's a trend among young women mostly. Or that low self esteem, abuse and so on are also a mostly feminized issue because of unrealistic gender and sexuality factors, you slam ME.

You assume there is a hedonistic, rudderlessness in my life because I'm not religious or declaring myself a Christian ad nauseum as you do momof4?

Wow.

And pro from dover, a professional wouldn't try to diagnose anyone from a cyberspace blog thread.

That would be stupid, unnecessary, unprofessional and low class. You apparently have NOTHING HELPFUL to add to a discussion about self mutilation without attacking someone you don't know.
Why don't you stick to the subject?

Take your own gutless advice.




Charles
"the emptiness of having everything, and knowing nothing"

It's not about materialism or affluence. It's about being abused and/or neglected; it's how they deal with emotional pain.
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