The Psychology of Self-Injury: Exploring Self-Harm & Mental Health

Can Imagery Help Reduce Self-Harm?, with Dr. Nicholas Westers

Episode Summary

Nicholas J. Westers, Psy.D., ABPP from Children's Health and UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, Texas returns to walk us through three imagery exercises to help accomplish our goals and reduce self-injury and self-harm.

Episode Notes

Mental imagery refers to sensory processing in the absence of sensory stimuli, and this can be through our visual senses or our senses of hearing, smell, taste, and touch. Below are links to some of the research referenced in this episode. If you want to go back and listen to each of the exercises, the time markers are 5:08 - 10:11 (Exercise #1), 24:53 - 36:48 (Exercise #2), and 42:26 - 50:50 (Exercise #3).

Click here for the link to the Imaginator App on the App Store for iPhone.

  1. Lawrence, H. R., Balkind, E. G., Ji, J. L., Burke, T. A., & Liu, R. T. (2023). Mental imagery of suicide and non-suicidal self-injury: A meta-analysis and systematic review. Clinical Psychology Review, 103, 102302.
  2. McEvoy, P. M., Hayes, S., Hasking, P. A., & Rees, C. S. (2017). Thoughts, images, and appraisals associated with acting and not acting on the urge to self-injure. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 57, 163-171.
  3. Cloos, M., Di Simplicio, M., Hammerle, F., & Steil, R. (2020). Mental images, entrapment and affect in young adults meeting criteria of nonsuicidal self-injury disorder (NSSID) – a daily diary study. Borderline Personality Disorder and Emotion Dysregulation, 7, 4.
  4. Ji, J. L., Kyron, M., Saulsman, L., Becerra, R., Lin, A., Hasking, P., & Holmes, E. A. (2024). Picturing self-harm: Investigating flash-forward mental imagery as a proximal and modifiable driver of non-suicidal self-injury. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 54, 713-727.
  5. Bang, S.-K., & Lee, E. (2024). Short imagery rescripting intervention effects on non-suicidal self-injury college students: A randomized controlled trial. The Open Psychology Journal, 17, e18743501342804.
  6. Schmied, E., Hack, L., Connemann, B., Sosic-Vasic, Z., & Kroener, J. (2024). You’re not alone: Imagery rescripting for adolescents who self-harm. Frontiers in Psychology, 15, 1395603.
  7. Di Simplicio, M., Appiah-Kusi, E., Wilkinson, P., Watson, P., Meiser-Stedman, C., Kavanagh, D. J., & Holmes, E. A. (2020). Imaginator: A proof-of-concept feasibility trial of a brief imagery-based psychological intervention for young people who self-harm. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 50(3), 724-740.
  8. Knäuper, B., McCollam, A., Rosen-Brown, A., Lacaille, J., Kelso, E., & Roseman, M. (2011). Fruitful plans: Adding targeted mental imagery to implementation intentions increases fruit consumption. Psychology and Health, 26(5), 601-617.

Follow Dr. Westers on Instagram @DocWesters. To join ISSS, visit itriples.org and follow ISSS on Facebook and Twitter/X (@ITripleS).

The Psychology of Self-Injury podcast has been rated #1 by Feedspot  in their list of "10 Best Self Harm Podcasts" and #5 in their "20 Best Clinical Psychology Podcasts." It has also been featured in Audible's "Best Mental Health Podcasts to Defy Stigma and Begin to Heal."