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. 2004 Aug;13(3):62-7.

Developing and piloting community-based self-injury treatment groups for adolescents and their parents

M K Nixon  1 , Linda McLagan, Susan Landell, Adrienne Carter, M Deshaw
Affiliations

Developing and piloting community-based self-injury treatment groups for adolescents and their parents

M K Nixon et al. Can Child Adolesc Psychiatr Rev. 2004 Aug.

Abstract
in English, French

Introduction: Self injurious behaviour is not uncommon in depressed adolescents while little is known about effective treatments for this behaviour in this age group. The objective of this article is to illustrate the development and initial pilot of groups for adolescents who self injure and their parents.

Method: Articles and texts derived from a literature search of group treatments for self injuring adolescents were used to develop a pilot group for self injuring adolescents and a separate group for parents. The groups were piloted over the spring of 2004, at a community child and youth mental health clinic.

Results: Eight weekly sessions for adolescents and 4 biweekly sessions for parents occurred. The adolescent group was a back to back dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT) skills group followed by a therapeutic support group. Two thirds of both the adolescents and parents completed their groups. Overall, adolescents found both theirs and the parent group helpful. Parents reported that their group enabled more balanced and less reactive communication as well as benefit in meeting and talking with other parents facing similar difficulties.

Conclusion: Further refinement and formal evaluation of such group therapy approaches to the treatment of self injurious behaviour in adolescents is warranted.

Introduction: L’automutilation est relativement fréquente chez l’adolescent déprimé. Il existe peu d’études cependant sur le traitement de cette automutilation à l’adolescence. Cet article a pour objectif d’illustrer comment nous avons développé une intervention pour adolescents qui s’automutilent et leurs parents.

Méthodologie: Nous avons étudié plusieurs articles de la littérature, chapitres de livres, traitant des interventions de groupe pour contrer l’automutilation chez les adolescents et, à partir de là, nous avons formé, au printemps 2004, deux groupes : le premier, composé d’adolescents qui présentaient de l’automutilation et, le second, des parents de ces adolescents.

Résultats: Il y a eu huit rencontres hebdomadaires pour le groupe des adolescents et quatre rencontres bimensuelles pour les parents. Les interventions dans le groupe des adolescents furent de deux ordres : le développement d’habilités en thérapie béhaviorale dialectique (TBD) suivi immédiatement d’intervention de support. Les deux tiers des adolescents et des parents se sont rendus jusqu’à la fin des traitements. En bref, les adolescents .rent mention d’amélioration du comportement d’automutilation et conclurent que leur groupe et celui des parents avaient tous deux été utiles. Les parents quant à eux .rent état que leur groupe de traitement leur avait permis d’être plus nuancés et moins défensifs dans leurs rapports avec leurs enfants; ils ajoutèrent que le fait de se rencontrer et de partager ensemble les difficultés avait eu un effet salutaire.

Conclusions: Il y a lieu de poursuivre l’évaluation de ces interventions de groupe pour contrer les comportements d’automutilation chez l’adolescent.

Keywords: Adolescents; dialectical behaviour therapy; parents; self-injury; therapeutic support groups.

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