From the middle of the twentieth century onward, self-injurious behaviours have been described by some medical professionals as ‘suicide gestures’. The defining features of these ‘gestures’ include dramatic presentation, ‘low medical lethality’ and ‘low or no intent to die’. The suicide gesture is instead variously described as a bid for attention, an attempt to manipulate others, or, slightly less judgementally, a communication of distress. These descriptions are, as recent scholarship has recognised, problematic, and they reflect the negative attitudes people who self-injure may experience when they seek help in primary care or accident and emergency settings. Moreover, the word ‘gesture’ may imply that self-injury undertaken for any purpose other than suicide is insincere, illegitimate or less meaningful than ‘genuine’ suicide attempts.