Einar Martin Martinsen Mortensen lives in the basement of a house in Steinkjer. He is involved in the local team for Mental Health Youth, and volunteers during the Steinkjer Festival. – I think it’s a bit nice to look at all the people, see that they are enjoying themselves and make sure that they are doing well. When Einar tells stories, he likes to speak with a lightness in his voice. But it is a way for him to let others off the hook and think about the hill he really has. And that he is part of a discouraging statistic. Einar received these encouraging notes as a Christmas calendar one year. Now they hang on the living room wall. Gloomy figures – That it would be so bad, it surprised me. That’s what Adrian Lorentsson, head of Mental health for young people, says. They have asked Opinion to create a survey among over 1,800 Norwegians between the ages of 16 and 36. 3 out of 10 have injured themselves without intending to take their own life. It is clear that more women than men say they have done this. More than 4 in 10 say they have had thoughts of taking their own life. – It is an expression of the fact that there are an incredible number of young people who are having a very difficult time. The numbers we see are both gloomy and discouraging, but numbers aside, this is about people, says Lorentsson. Adrian Lorentsson in Mental health for young people says that it has nothing special to say about the offer for the mentally ill who is in government. He believes there must be more beds in psychiatry. Photo: Brother Kvammen Bjerke / news Hurt himself Einar has a tattoo on his left arm. It covers all the scars he has. It started in elementary school. While he was sitting in his own room, because he struggled with dyslexia, he had time to stab himself with something sharp. Again and again. – I think I hoped to achieve and cry. I think that’s what I was longing for. He had a difficult childhood and had to take on a lot of responsibility at home. Then he learned to shut his feelings inside. – You shouldn’t get angry, you shouldn’t get too happy. And you shouldn’t cry, because at least it will take a long time. If someone discovered that he hurt himself at primary or secondary school, no one intervened, according to Einar. Einar can smile and laugh, but it’s mostly a mask. He has worked for a long time to perfect the way he can say something without making others sad. Photo: Sverre Lilleeng / news Self-harm escalated in high school. He started cutting himself in the arm. Einar has also had thoughts of taking his own life. Twice he tried to carry it out as well, but got scared. He has received help along the way. He has both been hospitalized, and has an agreement with an institution that he can call if he needs someone to talk to. – I would like to say that I don’t think about it at all anymore. But I do. I might go a maximum of three days without thinking about it. But, it has been over two years since he cut himself. At the same time, he is concerned that there are many others who feel the same way as him. – The pain from cutting yourself can drown out the negative thoughts, but it also drowns out all the positive thoughts. Treatment helps Anita Johanna Tørmoen works at the National Center for Suicide Research and Prevention. She says that although there are some weaknesses in the survey that Mental Health Youth has been asked to prepare, research from both Norway and other countries shows that there has been an increase in self-harm and suicidal thoughts in recent years. – We find that very alarming. She says that self-harm, thoughts of taking one’s own life and suicide attempts can have several functions for the individual. But it can prevent people from dealing with their feelings. Anita Johanna Tørmoen says that both friends, family and the person concerned can and should seek help if needed, because treatment has good results. Photo: Øystein Horgmo / UiO – We need to have time and space to help young people get out of this quickly. Studies have just been carried out in Norway, how much it means to come in early in relation to young people who engage in self-harm, says Tørmoen. She says that both friends and parents of those struggling with self-harm can help by asking questions and showing interest. – Talk to the person concerned, listen: “I see that you have new wounds or scars, and I would like to hear from you. Are there things that are not so good?” At her own pace, 29-year-old Elise sits on a white painted bench in a park in Inderøy in Trøndelag. She has struggled with both eating disorders, self-harm and suicidal thoughts. She says that the self-harm became a kind of routine. – It is a short-term solution. It doesn’t help anything in the long run. Elise is wearing a long-sleeved, white wool sweater, even though it’s a hot summer day. It hides her scars. Photo: Sverre Lilleeng / news Elise has been followed up. Both admissions and talk therapy. Today she is in a slightly better place, although there is still a way to go. – I am trying to work on taking it at my own pace and that I will not become a person who has an almost normal life in one year. I have no chance of that with my starting point. But that’s what I want. – Seek help Einar at Steinkjer still has a way to go. At the same time, he is worried about others who are in the same situation as he has been: For him, it is important to be told that you are not alone: - I think there are many people who walk around and think that there is no one like me . But it certainly is. There are people who think and feel like you. Adrian Lorentsson in Mental health youth agrees. – It can be easy to get the impression that it is completely impossible to get help, and it is not. My main message is, talk to someone, get help. If you stop seeking help because you are afraid of not getting it, then you only guarantee that you will not get the help you need. Need someone to talk to? If you need to talk to someone, there are several helplines, chat services and support groups where you can share your thoughts and feelings completely anonymously, and get support, advice and guidance: Mental health on the helpline 116 123 Mental health also has a chat, which you can find at mentalhelse.no. Mental health youth has a chat service that is open seven days a week. You can find it at mentalhelseungdom.no Church SOS chat service: soschat.no Young Conversation: [email protected] Church SOS also has a helpline on 22 40 00 40 Cross on the neck from the Red Cross: 800 33 321 (for children and young people up to 18 years.) Kors på halsen also has a chat: korspåhalsen.no (for children and young people up to 18 years old.) The emergency telephone for children and young people: 116 111 Sami national competence service – mental health care and substance abuse 78 96 74 00 SnakkOmPsyken.no: Chat service run by Blå Kors Livslosen is a non-clinical low-threshold service where you can come and stay for 5 days: 45 84 54 63 In urgent cases, call 113 You can find more helplines here Published 26.06.2024, at 07.31
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3 out of 10 young people say they have hurt themselves deliberately, without wanting to take their own life – news Trøndelag – Local news, TV and radio
