Self-harm images on Instagram show how difficult it is to police content online

It’s not clear whether there is a cause-and-effect relationship between being exposed to self-harm behaviors and engaging in them, Lindsey Giller, a clinical psychologist at the Child Mind Institute in New York, told Quartz. However, if someone is vulnerable or had already started harming themselves, seeing similar images can “definitely” be triggering, and even cause them to go back to these behaviors, she added.