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A growing number of teens are
turning to self-injury as a means
of coping - but at what price?
By Erin Randolph
Sitting in a bathtub at her grandparents'
house, Blair took a razor blade
and sliced both knees three or
four times. As the skin parted
under the sharpness of the blade,
her vibrant blood faded as it
hit the water and dispersed in
clouds of red-tinted relief.
The pain was intense; the release,
however, was better.
The bathtub scenario will go
down as a "good" experience
- if one could refer to it as
"good" - and one of
the most effective Blair experienced.
She wasn't trying to commit suicide
- at least not this time. Instead,
as an adolescent girl, Blair was
a self-injurer, or self-mutilator,
a person who tries to change the
way he or she feels by causing
serious physical harm without
the conscious effort to commit
suicide. >>
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