Self-harming is when a person causes intentional harm to themselves. The pain they cause is a coping mechanism to help them release problematic feelings or anger. The disorder normally affects children under the age of 16, but can still emerge in later life among adults. Left undetected it can be a silent killer. This is how our Limerick Lie Detector Service helped Corinne and Patrick find a new life.
Patrick and Corinne’s case
Patrick had been in a relationship with Corrine for some time. It was happy but intense. Corrine had grown up in the care system and no matter how happy she was she still seemed to withdraw into herself occasionally. At these times she would go out or send Patrick out so she could “gather her thoughts”. It had been on one of these occasions that Patrick had found a small spot of blood on the floor of the bathroom and a broken razor in the bin. When he asked Corrine about it, she explained she had cut her leg shaving and broken the razor by stepping on it.
Limerick Lie Detector Service
This story didn’t add up, Patrick thought whilst inspecting the completely blade free razor. He’d spoken to June, his mother, about this previously when he’d seen some scratch marks on the underside of Corrine’s thigh. June suggested she might be self-harming and she’d even spoke to Corrine about it. Corinne denied it but Patrick and his mother didn’t believe her.
Patrick couldn’t ignore the problem anymore and had to be sure she wasn’t self-harming. He contacted our Limerick Lie Detector Service.
Patrick knew Corinne had been in and out of foster homes her entire childhood. She never really spoke that much about it but the way she acted made him think more had gone on than he knew or could even imagine. A polygraph test could give him the answers he needed and assist her in getting the help she so desperately required.
Patrick was surprised when she readily agreed to take the test. We weren’t.
Test and results
The day of the test came and a nervous Corinne sat down. In her pre-test interview her mind was put at rest by our polygraph examiner. As totally unbiased and non-judgemental professionals our examiners are good listeners. During the test Corrine broke down and confessed. She revealed a world of pain not even Patrick could have imagined. It was a world that included sexual abuse and violence.
We were not surprised that Corinne agreed to take the polygraph test so easily. Often survivors find it difficult to talk to those closest to them. However, they do need to talk especially when they have kept so much to themselves for so long. Presenting them with an opportunity to do that with someone they don’t know, in a professional environment, is often the first step in the recovery process.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Corinne attends CBT sessions once a week and has found a different way to release the stress and tension she feels whenever she thinks or is reminded of her past. Children in the care system are sometimes subjected to violence and abuse. Shame, misguided guilt or fear has historically stopped many survivors from reporting abusers. Secrets lie these can remain buried for years, if not for life. The consequences can be disastrous but thankfully Patrick’s quick thinking and booking a polygraph examination with our Limerick Lie Detector Service was the intervention that set Corinne free.
Is there something your partner or family is doing that is making you worry? Maybe they can’t admit it or won’t – perhaps we can help. If you’d like to discuss or order a polygraph test anywhere in the UK or Ireland, please call our confidential and free helpline on 0800 368 8277. Alternatively, you may wish to use our secure online booking system to make a reservation.