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My like for/fascination with self-harm, ryona and things related to it is multifaceted and complex. I cannot give a whole or complete answer since I do not understand every part of why I like it or why I interact with it. What I can say is that I do not want people to harm themselves if they do not need to. The counter to this point would be, "Nobody NEEDS to harm themselves" which is true and not true. People won't die if they don't harm themselves of course, but taking into account that self-harm is a coping mechanism, it is possible and most likely that if someone does not self-harm when they're in a period of distress they may do something worse to themselves or begin to harm other people. The total level of harm done increases when someone cannot or will not self-harm therefore it can be argued that self-harm can be construed as mildly positive but this is neither here nor there.
Addressing the point of "If you like it and interact with it, it encourages it". I don't think this is true. Liking and interacting with TRUE self-harm (self-harm that is done as an emotional coping mechanism, not for attention [which is itself it's own coping mechanism but it's beyond the scope of what I'm talking about]) has no bearing on whether the person themselves is going to do it. I have posted my own self-harm and at no point was I influenced by others to do it even when people have encouraged me because I know they're acting in bad faith. My issues are severe enough that text on a screen can't bother me. For me personally, showing my own self-harm has a few purposes:
1. It's proving my own self-punishment to the world. The world can stop hurting me now, I've already done it to myself.
2. I want others to abuse and mock me for it, so that I feel more confident that I did the right thing and that I deserve it.
3. I want to communicate with others who do it so I feel less alone and they feel less alone.
There are probably more reasons but these are the ones I can properly dissect. In addition, my self-harm isn't just cutting. It can come in many forms including punching, hitting myself with something solid, denying myself food or water, or making myself throw up.
Addressing the point of "Why do you like it/interact with it if it has no bearing on whether or not the person will do it?"
This is complex but I think the best way is that when I see it, it gives me some relief myself and I feel less alone. I empathise with that person and feel their hurt. I can imagine the sensation and it takes some of my own emotional edge off. I go through my own likes pretty frequently, especially more so when I feel shitty, and seeing those things helps me from doing it more often.
Addressing the point of "Why harm yourself or want to harm others at all?"
This is again, complex but I think it can broken into two parts intimate and non-intimate. Dealing with non-intimate first since I think this is the easier one to explain. It's simply a lack of effective coping mechanisms for myself. It's the only thing that makes me feel better and makes me feel like I deserve to exist.
Dealing with intimate harm is a bit different but I think it can be explained somewhat easily. The purpose of wanting to harm someone who I have intimate feelings for comes from a place of insecurity, probably. If someone is willing to be hurt by me, to put up with pain, being degraded, being hurt and just generally being fucked with, they must really like me. It's absolute proof of their love. It's easy to tell someone you love them, it's easy to buy gifts, it's easy to just hang around with someone. It doesn't require any level of discomfort. It's extremely hard to pretend to like someone when they're hurting you. When someone punches you and you still love them despite it, that's what real love is to me. It's also an emotional release for myself and I would also be okay with someone wanting to hurt me if it meant proving how much I loved them. Getting to hurt someone (or hurt by someone) and they want you to, to prove how much they love you, is the best feeling possible.
