Cutting: Regaining Control In Seemingly Uncontrollable Situations

Cutting is a form of self injury where the individual scratches or pierces the skin with a sharp object, usually multiple times.

“People who cut may not have developed ways to cope. Or their coping skills may be overpowered by emotions that are too intense. When emotions don't get expressed in a healthy way, tension can build up — sometimes to a point where it seems almost unbearable. Cutting may be an attempt to relieve that extreme tension. For some, it seems like a way of feeling in control.

The urge to cut might be triggered by strong feelings the person can't express — such as anger, hurt, shame, frustration, or alienation. People who cut sometimes say they feel they don't fit in or that no one understands them. A person might cut because of losing someone close or to escape a sense of emptiness. Cutting might seem like the only way to find relief or express personal pain over relationships or rejection” (Nemours Foundation).

While none of the characters in A BLIND EYE use cutting as a coping mechanism, two characters have developed a similar form of self injury. When they identify this common behavior by seeing the other doing the same thing, it helps them to gain insight about why they have developed this coping strategy.

https://kidshealth.org/en/teens/cutting.html