December 8, 2006

Mobilizing the Campuses Against Self-Mutilation

By GREGORY T. EELLS

I remember the first time I saw a client who engaged in "cutting," or what professionals now refer to as self-injurious behavior or SIB. I was working in a university counseling center in the mid-1990s and had recently completed all the requirements for becoming a licensed psychologist.

The client exhibited several of the signs that are now associated with self-injury: She had a history of sexual abuse and wore clothing that covered much of her body. Yet I did not ask her specifically