Adolescent deliberate self-harm. Part I: help-seeking behavior, or "it's a long way to tippereri"

On the example of adolescents with intentional non-suicidal self-harm the literature review shows the search for help as a behavioral skill, the process of going through a series of functional and organizational filters. As a result, a smaller portion of the most severely ill patients receive some kind of professional assistance. The detailed analysis is presented of various factors that impede a teenager from getting help and are favorable for receiving timely treatment. Professional services of a new type are more attractive, as they focus on psychosocial recovery and take into account the changing clinical and social needs of a teenager and their relatives (for more details, see Part II of the Review).