大象传媒

Self-harm means deliberately injuring your own body as a way to manage emotions that are too painful to express otherwise. This can mean anything from burning and cutting to drug and alcohol misuse.

To help young people affected by this problem, the Newham Asian Women's Project (NAWP) has released a DVD made by young people called 'Everybody Hurts', profiling the stories of affected men and women.

At least 142,000 people a year in the UK end up in hospital as a result of self-harm, and research says as many as 1 in 12 young people self-harm.

Research also shows that young South-Asian women between the ages of 15 and 35 are twice as vulnerable to suicide and self-harm as non-Asian women.

A study of young Asian women in east London by the NAWP in 2007 revealed that domestic violence and a pressure to be the 'perfect student' or 'perfect daughter' were among the reasons for self-harm.

Gurpreet Virdee from the NAWP

How to help

Gurpreet Virdee, Development Manager for Newham Asian Women's Project, told 大象传媒 London: "One of the worst things that someone could say is stop harming, because it could be the one thing that's keeping them alive."

For someone who self-harms, the NAWP suggests a number of ways to stay safe. These include keeping a list of numbers of people or organisations to speak to in an emergency.

Also, when you feel like self-harming it may help to keep a list of healthy things you like to do and happy memories, as well as removing yourself from the place you usually go where you self-harm.

To get a copy of the DVD go to the NAWP鈥檚 website at www.nawp.org. The project received funding from The Diana Memorial Fund.

angela.saini@bbc.co.uk