Blogs, identity, stigma and scars: The legacy of self-injury

Objective: In this article, we explored the experience of living with scars from self-injury; how people who self-injure make meaning of their scars and how these scars are a part of the identity construction process. Method: Sixty entries, from twenty-five online narrative blogs detailing the experience of living with self-injury scars, were analyzed using a contextualized thematic analysis informed by an embodied perspective. Results: Analysis generated two dominant themes: temporal aspects of identity; and social stigma and scars. Conclusion: Far reaching consequences of self-injury scars on the daily lives of people who selfinjure were found. This included a person’s posture, clothing, choices of career, inclusion in family life, leisure activities and relationships; all of which have corollaries in emotional and psychological well-being. Scars were found to be self-narrative with particular salience given to how scars represented healing. Novel findings included the central role scars played in the resistance of self-injury stigma.