Psychiatria pre prax 1/2026
The phenomenon of nonsuicidal self-injury – how can we help effectively? – Part 2: Guiding and accompanying our patients towards recovery
This section of the text is dedicated to the principles of effective approaches to individuals who self-harm and to the available treatment options (psychotherapy, pharmacotherapy), as recently recommended in the professional literature and as they have proven effective in psychiatric and psychotherapeutic practice. It places particular emphasis on the practical applicability of the presented knowledge in everyday outpatient psychiatric settings. Therefore, it focuses especially on interventions or educational resources that can be directly offered or recommended to patients, their families, or close ones within time-limited conditions. As an example of a comprehensive approach to patients who self-harm, including work with their families or close persons, it refers to the British clinical guidelines. Since no comparable national recommendations currently exist in the Czech Republic, it provides an overview of selected up-to-date options, inspiration, and an invitation to adopt a creative approach in caring for patients who seek our help.
Keywords: self-injury, triggers, self-help strategies, alternatives to self-injury, Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), prevention
