I have been in those shoes. I have walked into a building and knew people were talking about me. I've had that moment when people all the sudden just stop talking when they see you so you know they were saying something about you. I've gotten the glances and heard the snickers. I know that there were rumours being spread about me that were not true. I know all of this because for every snicker or glance there were good people around me that were honest with me about it. Those are the people that even to this day I still am in contact with because they were good people.
I have been in that state of mind before from being bullied that you just don't have any strength to go on. You think how can life possibly be this cruel to you and why do you have to be the one to suffer through it. I've had some people I considered friends being among the people who were contributing to the rumours and the bullying. In my high school there were those that were popular and those that were picked on. I was not in the popular category because I made a choice that I wasn't going to exculde people from being my friends based off of their wealth, their sexual preference, or any other stupid thing that high school kids judge others on.
In this day and age it is so much worse because anything can be said over the internet. Cyberbullying is a HUGE problem in this country. It's easy to be cruel when you have a computer screen to hide behind isn't it? I know I've said some things on the interent that I ended up taking down or deleting because they were really mean. I am sure we all have had those moments. What you need to think about is how what you say about someone affects them and everything around them. What happens when what is said on the internet starts to follow you around? Suddenly what was once maybe some cruel internet prank becomes real. Words do hurt when they start becoming actions. When you start to hear the same mean thing being said about you over and over again.
There are steps you can take to protect yourself from it. If you are on a social media site and someone starts offesnively messaging you almost every site out there has a block function. All you have to do is click on that button and that person can no longer say anything to you. If you don't want to have anything spread about you than don't give them any ammo. Don't post provocative pictures or anything else that could give them a reason to start saying stuff about you. People are going to talk because it is part of human nature but it's up to you to be smart enough to know when it's appropriate to respond. If you hear something about someone that you know than stand up and say hey that isn't true. It's also very easy to just go along with something instead of standing up against it. That's why they always say there are leaders and than there are followers.
If you are being bullied please just remember for every person that is saying mean things about you there are plenty more people saying wonderful things about you. For every person who may not like you there are plenty who also do. People aren't always going to like you but in the end does it really matter that much? Does being liked really have that much of an impact on who you are as a person? If you are the best person that you can possibly be and have family and friends that love you shouldn't that have a bigger impact? You are the only one that can control how you react to situations. Revenge is not the answer because that only makes things worse. Suicide is not the answer because that hurts more than just you it hurts everyone who cares about you.
When people bully you it's because they want to get a reaction out of you. The less you react to them the less they are going to want to do it. That is what they are looking for. They want to see someone react to their bullying and see that they are having an effect on someone. Please if you were bullied or know anyone who has been or is being bullied talk to them. Let them know that they are not alone. Share your stories with them so they know you have been through it to. Stop bullying now before it becomes worse than it already is.
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