Practical and expert guidance on how to identify and treat nonsuicidal self-injury - an often misunderstood, but increasingly frequent phenomenon

Nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) is a baffling, troubling, and hard to treat phenomenon that has increased markedly in recent years. Key issues in diagnosing and treating NSSI adequately include differentiating it from attempted suicide and other mental disorders, as well as understanding the motivations for self-injury and the context in which it occurs.

This accessible and practical book provides therapists and students with a clear understanding of these key issues, as well as of suitable assessment techniques. It then goes on to delineate research-informed treatment approaches for NSSI, with an emphasis on functional assessment, emotion regulation, and problem solving, including motivational interviewing, interpersonal skills, CBT, DBT, behavioral management strategies, delay behaviors, exercise, family therapy, risk management, and medication, as well as how to successfully combine methods.

From the reviews

"The authors’ major focus is on defining nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI), describing its domain, and reporting which treatments have been effective in reducing it; but, in the process, they inevitably compare and contrast it with suicidal behavior. In doing so, they have written a book that will be of interest to all mental health clinicians who have patients or clients who self-injure, whether that be with suicidal intent or not. The authors’ presentation is evidence based, clear, and concise.[...]
[...] The stated objective of the [Advances in Psychotherapy] series is to provide therapists with practical, evidence-based treatment guidance for the most common disorders seen in clinical practice. This volume clearly fulfills that objective in regard to NSSI. It is an excellent presentation of the latest research on NSSI, and one of its strongest points is the distinction that it helps the clinician draw between NSSI and suicidal behavior."
Phillip M. Kleespies in PsycCRITIQUES, Vol. 56, Dec. 2011

"The authors are the foremost researchers of this field. They describe every important aspect of the clinical manifestations, diagnostic issues, and treatment recommendations concerning self-injury. Two areas are very practical in the text and are emphasized throughout the book: One is the emotional and motivational state of mind of the young people who harm themselves, the other is the therapeutic approach to helping them. The book is recommended for anyone who works with adolescents and is interested in research on self-harm and suicide."
Béla Buda, MD, in Crisis, vol. 33, 2012

Praise for the book

“This volume is an extremely valuable resource that summarizes and translates the current science on NSSI to practice. Anyone interested in understanding what psychologists have learned about NSSI, and how to use this knowledge to help reduce self-injury, will want a copy of this excellent book.”
Mitch Prinstein, PhD, Professor and Director of Clinical Psychology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC; Editor, Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology (2011-2016)

“Both seasoned clinicians and those in training will find Klonsky and colleagues' book to be a tremendously useful and practical source for the latest information on nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) and for strategies to assess and treat this behavior in clinical practice.”
Alexander L. Chapman, PhD, RPsych, Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC; President, DBT Centre of Vancouver, BC, Canada

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