Episode 80 of the Becoming Centered Podcast reviews the psychology that drives superficial cutting and layers on top of that a presentation of the neuro-psychiatric perspective.  That understanding, of what’s actually going on in the brain when a client engages in superficial cutting, explains why minimizing staff attention given to this this self-injurious behavior does not reduce the frequency or the severity of repeat episodes.  Superficial cutting becomes a habitual, even addictive, behavior because it powerfully changes the chemistry and functioning of the brain.  With this understanding, Residential Treatment Staff can use physiological interrupts and other concrete interventions to give clients the skills they need to end their use of this maladaptive coping mechanism.