The Pain Paradox: Most people go out of their way to avoid physical harm. But for many teens, deliberate damage becomes a form of emotion regulation--because the brain hits a new glitch in processing pain.

The article discusses a study which described why teenagers are especially vulnerable to self-harm. Topics discussed include concern of psychologists on the long-lasting effects of self-harm, triggers of self-harm, and relief from heightened emotion as one benefit of self-harm. The association between how the brain works and how people think and feel is also mentioned.