About hitting/banging head.

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Recently admitted to head-hitting/self-injury to a new psychologist.

Prescription medication is now in my future.

Whoo yeah. This was the main reason I went for diagnosis, because I figured that it was a very 'not normal' activity and wanted to know why on earth I did it.

When I really get going, I tend to move from hitting my head with the heels of my hand to banging it on things (glass door, steering wheel), but it's completely unexpected and usually hurts a whole lot, which stuns me for a bit and then I go back to using my hands. I don't think my body (brain, whatever) does it in order to really hurt, so I don't think I'm at risk of a concussion or anything.

...hopefully.

I hit myself in the head when I am very frustrated, or I would hit my head on a wall or table...not repeatedly, just like once or twice. And I don't do it as much any more, and when I do I try to do it softly...cus now I am kind of afraid of hurting myself.

It's odd when I think about it now though because before I started researching aspergers, it didn't occur to me that it might be abnormal to do so.

It's something most people don't do, but it's among the more common abnormal activities. If someone who's NT and doesn't have a mental illness does it, it's usually to do with their being under a lot of stress--it's common in teenagers, early-twenties people, which is not coincidentally the time of your life when you're under the most stress. It can mean that they don't know how to deal with their stress well enough and are using unhealthy coping mechanisms--kind of the way some people drink too much, go on unwise shopping sprees, or overeat when they're upset.

For people who self-injure more habitually, it can be associated with depression, borderline personality disorder, anxiety disorders, eating disorders, and developmental disorders. Some people with developmental disorders self-injure as a stim, so for them it's not related to distress.

If the injury is severe or life-threatening, it's usually associated with acute psychosis--the sort that happens when somebody with schizophrenia or bipolar mania is in crisis. Other than the severe self-injury related to psychosis, head-banging is probably the most dangerous form of self-injury because of the danger of detached retinas (which can cause visual impairment or blindness) or, in severe cases, concussion or head injury of the sort that boxers might get from being repeatedly hit in the head by opponents.

So a psychologist is right to be concerned about it, because it is generally either associated with an important condition, or because it is associated with distress on the part of their patient. I agree with that. What I don't like is how they tend to overreact, especially to superficial self-injury that has little or no chance of causing serious physical problems. In my mind, a person who tries to cope by drinking too much is in more trouble, because drinking is about a thousand times more dangerous.

I punch myself in the jaw, so I worry about my teeth. Might try hitting my legs in a meltdown instead.

You should definitely tell a psychologist. It's better to go for a harm reduction approach than forcing yourself not to sib.