From Compulsive to Conscious:
Using Somatic Rituals to Rewrite Behaviors
A Master’s Thesis by Lynn Zhang, 2026
This thesis investigates how designed physical sensation and ritualized embodied interaction can offer safer, meaningful alternatives to self-harm as a form of emotional regulation. While non-suicidal self-injury is often framed only as pathology or crisis behavior, the underlying needs for control, relief, and meaning are rarely addressed through design.
This research centers on young adults who rely on somatic sensation to regulate intense emotional states, yet find conventional verbal therapy, wellness guidance, and crisis support misaligned with their lived reality.
Introduction
Research & Context
Self-harm persists not because pain is sought, but because it provides rapid, controllable physiological relief and a tangible sense of agency. By examining mechanisms such as pain offset, behavioral reinforcement loops, and parallel practices—including BDSM, extreme sports, and ritual performance—this thesis reframes self-harm as a functional, though destructive, coping response within a fragmented care ecosystem.
Insight & HMW Metrics
“The therapeutic narrative discusses, labels, and explains predicaments of the self, the self is in turn invited to conceive of itself as ridden with emotional and psychological problems.
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Item description
Design Development
Vowgrip Smartband
A smartband that gently grips your wrist during moments of compulsion, guiding you back to control through pressure, breath, and intention.
Rune Exchange
A collabrative drawing ritual that helps people express and release emotional overload without relying on verbal explanation or self-analysis.
UnderFur Workshop
A reflective plush-making workshop that helps people externalize compulsive urges and build their own non-judgmental coping mechanism.
UnderFur Workshop
An activity subscription service that connects people to curated intensity-based experiences, empowers people through guided challenges, group support, and milestone-based progression.