Self Injurious Behaviour (SIB)

I would just like to thank everyone who has read and commented on our last posts. I have only one more question. SIB... Some of our students engage in SIB from time to time and in times of distress and overwhelm. 

We have figured what's causing it for most, needs not getting met, over stimulated, under stimulated, bored and communication. For most of the students we know what can help and do our best. But, for Riley, I know it seems pike we are picking her but we are just baffled and confused, we don't know what to do. 

Today, she has gone home with bite marks on her hands. She didn't come to school with them, so it happened at school. She was very overwhelmed today and was close to exploding but she kept it in and under control. Staff had an eye on her at all times, but somehow she manged to bite herself. We aren't sure when yet but we will do our best to figure things out and what triggered it. 

SIB is very common for Riley, more than the other students, so our responses change. She will headbang, bite, pull her hair nearly ripping it out, punch things and herself, and eat inedible objects. We will say stop or redirect her, if she's headbanging, we will use our hand to block or a cushion or mat. If she's biting, we will get her chew and hold her hands to block this, if she doesn't manage to bite, we have no choice but the pinch her nose so she stops, but that's last case scenario which we've only had to do once. We do everything to keep her safe, but the more people there is or if we try stopping her, the worse the SIB and she gets even more agitated so it's difficult. What else could we do to help, new tactics and support to put in place. 

Parents
  • We al know that so many things could be responsible if the key is centred around triggering. Knowing that several suggestions are likely to come forth, i might draw attention to the growing phenomenon of students being triggered by events taking place on social media. It could be in the morning, it could be the night before. It does happen, you can all have a bad day due to this source of unrest. I'm not sure what the answer is given that by implication, this is an area private to them unless they'd share. Maybe there is a calling for some kind of mechanism specifically so they can ease any burden caused via SM confidentially.

  • Most of the students don't have social media but the ones that do, will tell us about an issue, and there is an adult they trust who they will tell. If not there is a school counsellor who comes in  who they can talk to. 

    I know some triggers are because of something happening outside of school, I know that's the case with a lot of the students, they've had a bad night or morning and come to school tired or upset. 

    Rileys SIB is more severe than the other students, I understand for all of them its severe and needs to be taken seriously which it is, but Riley will do anything to cause harm to herself. For example, months ago, she was constantly headbanging and biting, we had to hold her for 30 minutes or more until we have a safe room to let go. We had a pillow to block her headbanging the wall but she did everything to get rid of the pillow, she would move to another spot, drop to the floor to use the floor, head bang the staff next to her. 

    She really tries to inflict pain to herself when distressed, but other students will aswell but if we block them, they will use the cushion to headbang so it's easier to deal with. 

Reply
  • Most of the students don't have social media but the ones that do, will tell us about an issue, and there is an adult they trust who they will tell. If not there is a school counsellor who comes in  who they can talk to. 

    I know some triggers are because of something happening outside of school, I know that's the case with a lot of the students, they've had a bad night or morning and come to school tired or upset. 

    Rileys SIB is more severe than the other students, I understand for all of them its severe and needs to be taken seriously which it is, but Riley will do anything to cause harm to herself. For example, months ago, she was constantly headbanging and biting, we had to hold her for 30 minutes or more until we have a safe room to let go. We had a pillow to block her headbanging the wall but she did everything to get rid of the pillow, she would move to another spot, drop to the floor to use the floor, head bang the staff next to her. 

    She really tries to inflict pain to herself when distressed, but other students will aswell but if we block them, they will use the cushion to headbang so it's easier to deal with. 

Children
  • Yes i hear you and sense that your dedication to the task continues. 

    Its peer to peer conflict mostly if there is a problem in SM. With stranger danger though the most fearful of occurrences is not really a common denominator, whilst peer to peer social conflict can be.

    I found recently that several schools were limited to stranger danger concepts and were not very well identifying violations of social norms on SM platforms. In that sense the attitude was identical to that we'd understand for the open portion of society, and that response is somewhat bizarre., This meant those schools knew almost nothing concerning the real nature of the students SM society. Furthermore they were dealing with matters using sanctions that one might should incidents have happened in the playground in 3D. All very well, but this also meant that the distraction could rumble on beneath the surface, and that extended student on student conflict could take place.  Yes - one does have to ask shall we be developing psychic skills. In the absence of that there are up to date matters to list in the probability of things. One also has to question to what degree it should be known what happens in private. It depends if it is private, what we are actually speaking of is public but out of sight much of the time. Furthermore it matters not one with what the mode of adversity is, should it be affecting a student negatively & is anti social.

    By virtue of researching a quality of life paper for almost two years, have seen SIB happen purely linked to trivial matters on SM several times recently. It is possible your school management need to update its beliefs in this area. I'd certainly not assume that no peer to peer pressure is present. I'd also question whether staff would know about such things right away by a kind of default ? Often there can be much anti social behaviour going on between students in todays social media exchanges. Some of it are low level forms of social blackmail linked to words & phrases a student has used if they were types not considered acceptable. Much of it is teasing with respect to gender fluidity and so on, and i found that schools tended to be behind on this kind of SM outlook. This By that i'm not saying student on student adversity exists in your case, just that it is a common social phenomena now. One student broke down because another was spreading rumours on SM about their supposed BO and smelly clothes for example. Students can be brutal outside of their known persona on SM, & in that sense they only share a known effect. The trouble is that frustration and bad behaviour is spilling out in buckets from the adult world. I often find it hard to see how we as a society are going to appease much more of the NT (and ASD lets face it ) juvenile style behaviour on that societal level.  We expect to clutter developing minds with complex social rules and concepts that have hidden key purposes & much extra (and seemingly) irrational boundary conditions., whilst often the young impulse is to find a place to emulate that in a kangaroo fashion = practice acting like adults. Ofc there is social corruption among students in SM  if few adults will behave themselves in the world at large. You good people in schools are expected to perform miracles & it is difficult for you all..

    I'd not be confident your good selves do have a modern grasp of the elements possible. I'm also sceptical concerning the remark that most of your students are not using SM. Certainly the topic (SM) would be only one complex element out of many, but its an exceptionally motivating & powerfully negative one if it is indeed in force. The designers of our sociological tapestries do not put everything together so all things make sense. Much of social expectation is linked to structures put in place to support divide and rule politics & thus the reason odd specifics are attached will never be revealed. As such intended to encourage persons to be pathological liars for a causes well away from schools, there are many destructive elements within our own national sociological mindset like this today. These things can mutate sociologically and spread among the wider public, adults first, but eventually filtering down to children. Then we'll see how things with strongly assertive and warped narratives - perhaps bullish even - that were meant to increase the efficiency of getting thing X done in an LA, begin to manifest as social behaviours all around as if it is ok.Such phenomena is appearing among the wider public and school public like students. There is a cost to every short cut that uses forceful language. There is a cost to using doctrines that claim it is alright for authority to use dubious & forceful means of communication. That cost is that it leaks out and becomes all of society. I'm not suggesting we can fix that as an all pervading social substance. I do feel that local authority agencies that have taken to coercive pressure to minimise contact with public are not wise to unleash such attitudes. But mainly i'm pointing out that t if we are not aware of the degree to which coercive behaviour is spread around, and how it is being distributed it is a little remiss.  I'm only suggesting there is enough sociological conflict of interest related to implicit duty of care for a school to be able to decide it is not acceptable that any student be under such burden = awareness is vital.  Though it is understandable that catching up is happening since these issues are fairly new - wel if at least 7 years is new..Obviously SM disruption only happens in outbreaks and isn't in every students networks. By far not every student is intent on being disruptive with SM either. But it is a growing commonality emergent as a general concern, where at present there seems to be a educationally cultural attitude toward it that nothing can be done. when it does occur it is probably true to say that only a small group in a network ring lead, often latching on to one particular student =  mobbing = virtual bullying = hello ?

    Only this morning i was discussing the progress of a boy that slit his wrists due to matters on SM. The source of which his parents knew nothing of at the time affect took place. Additionally whilst it is true that many students will readily open up to professionals if prompted, i would have said it feels a little optimistic to believe that all are doing this as matters of course as they do not. Hence when i referred to a 'mechanism, i meant one that could scaffold a way for the students to feel more confident to speak better. But that ability is going to depend on the general awareness of how SM bullying  tends to work. Often the bully has collated examples of older texts or messages that show the victim saying things that are considered socially inappropriate. From that position if there is going to be bullying, then the bully controls that student with those foootprints.

    So how are students in that ppsition all going to reveal the problem to staff, head of year, or senco et al ?. 

    There is nothing & nobody to blame for not quite being up to date with underground social systems. But is one of the transmission potentials for affect that need to take into consideration today. Your school like others is a good school no doubt, & seeks solutions. Without much doubt it is bad news that today triggering factors can lurk in social undercurrents but there it is. 

    There is somewhat of a counter intuitive element in detecting triggers from sub culture. Naturally is undesirable to conceptualise ordinary sociological exchange in a manner that inquires into a void like we are detectives. But what else is there when nobody wants to second guess, and the educator needs the student to inform of the matter. Thus on the occasions when there is a SM linked matter, presumably we need to choose between the means to pinpoint such triggers, and the inhibitions we might feel when delving into social environments that are beyond the veil. We've no option to use pseudonyms and infiltrate, that would be a job not of any school earth and extra creepy. Such is a sick mass element in underground society, as GDPR threw everyone a well picked bone linked to spam, and took the liberty of being about to stalk everything we do online - such is this socially demented element prevalent in human life. But i digress & must not on that.  So yes we are dependent on the students informing that something is wrong you are quite right. I'd suggest that the duty of care science first requires itself to understand the group dynamics of virtual bullying. once that has been written up & shared andralogically, there would be the opportunity to be in a better position to know if such is an issue in any X case or not. I'd also say that without such school management intelligence in place, one could hardly know what specific type of educator to student inquiry is best able to trigger the need to reveal the problem. Thus as with all things hidden & to be revealed, there will be phrases that help the student feel understood better, thus able to break away from the coercive control element of that bullying.. Sometimes if our use of probability is close enough, we'll only need to not show a defensive student we are clueless. Am unstable student is far more likely to put themselves into a bout of self inflicted behaviour if stark elements of bewilderment are being illustrated by staff. The most vulnerable students have a part of their psych that acts like a village of men do in front of someone reputed to be deadly at martial art. If they find out that in fact the person isn't, they tend to respond with a incredulous way of some type - well wouldn't we all.  But in unstable students the illusion shattering effect that yet again school staff are unable 'just to know - fix; the problem is just another source of destabilisation sometimes. The whole thing isn't fair for all & this epiphenomenon unfairness to school attitude is no exception - in principle - the student isn't 'unfair' just vulnerable. But here you see is yet another obstacle, where there has to be more to be aware of IF matters linked to SM do happen to be the problem.

    SM bullies can use counter measures based on threatening expose inappropriate language the victim may have used. Like the victim might have joked once-  X person is Gay, or whatever blah blah and things can get very messed up. Naturally it is in no school or student interest to round up such a posse and exclude them all. I have seen this dealt with by delicately detaching the technical bully(s). Most of the time they are just other kids not sure what is ok and what isn't. Then moving forward with every segment whilst facilitating in what is needed by each Some schools are ok with mass exclusion & one has to wonder what they are smoking.

    However  - whatever is actually is in your students case & hope you help to find her way there somehow so that she can enjoy school & study in peace

    She really tries to inflict pain to herself when distressed, but other students will as well but if we block them, they will use the cushion to head bang so it's easier to deal with. 

    Lol well - there is no greater symbol that translates as ''i'd rather die than be misunderstood again'' than that when it comes to learning disability based autism.

    These days there is a need to be certain the students are not driving themselves around the twist in SM if they are using their heads as percussion drills. We'll see how vital that is to the smooth operations need for SEN learning as time goes on. If its there it just needs to be broken up unless someone repeatedly refuses to refrain. Assuming it is possible to communicate effectively, such  bullies should not then concern industry fodder, As social effects such incidents of are an essentially trivial form of anti social behaviour. By contradiction cause much distress. but if we do not class them in this bracket its one rule for them ( politiciuans ) and rule for students. Perpetrators can either be shown that footprints in our wondrous Ai driven world are almost admissions of anti employability insanity & sicial dysfunction or they can't. Eventually the news would reach the school if the matter is like this yes - just as you stated it shall. . But an equation exists where any affected are forced to endure until such time arrives, whilst there is no data that proves such will within reasonable time frames. What if someone is able to bully for over a year  or more ? Thus this is about evolving ways to obtain that knowledge sooner in order to minimise the trauma. But also so as to be in a position to work with any bullies sooner. Perhaps there is a kind of mass cognitive dissonance based on exclusion potentials & schools can be apprehensive concerning what cam be known through SM. There is good cause to be, that doesn't alter the way a challenging predicament can make it rationally essential. What good would a explicit admission of failure be, should only dissonance rule senses of foreboding & take control ? Like that we'd be saying athat student X cannot be assisted in case more than the school wishes to handle is uncovered. This is why a clearer statement is needed. With many schools its all brushed under the carpet until matters explode, and mass exclusions take place. 

    I feel i need to again state that the subject matter in this post is a general to the topic coincidental to a current experience. It has been entered into to share matter, and is intended for a long term improvement in knowledge linked to SM. The post does not suggest anything is relevant to student 'Riley', but states that such eventualities could be relevant to any student today.

    Footnote - although thus is the same basic post,  i noticed it was a liable to seem incoherent in some ways & edited it to improve. Take nothing personally, these things only highlight the sheer depth by which it burdens the hard working school & whereby even more. Furthermore 'virtual' forms of challenging behaviour are by their implication being somewhat unfair on an already pressurised sector.

    Thank you for taking the time to describe the students reactions in such a meticulous manner.

    Regards