Monday, November 8, 2010

Shedding Light on an Old Problem

I finally put a name to a problem that has been on my mind lately. How I didn't think of it before, I don't know. I guess it's because I've never had to deal with it...until now.

Bullies. Bullying.

We all know about it, and we all say that it won't happen to me. Dismiss it. Out of site, out of mind. But, that doesn't make it okay. That doesn't just get rid of the problem. We as human beings with feelings have to identify it and put a stop to it.

The bullying is not happening to me personally, but rather to people around me. Still, these people are important to me, and the bullying needs to stop.

Do the bulliers know they are doing it? I have no clue. Perhaps they will read this because they also have close relations to me.

I will address the types of bullying surfacing in the situations because I feel awareness will open the eyes of those people and others who also see the bullying happening.

Physical.

The most common type to witness out there. But, it also can be greatly overlooked in minor instances. Pushing, shoving, smacking, punching, and so on are the clear indicators of physical bullying, in an intentional manner of course. This is where the problem lies. We playfully hit each other nowadays, so actual physical bullying can be taken as rough housing instead of a problem. If you feel physically threatened or are being physically bullied, tell an adult. Your mom, dad, teacher, principal, friend's mom, or someone you know and trust.

Verbal.

So frequently passed over. Even I didn't catch this at first. Verbal threats, verbal abuse. Words can hurt just as easily as fists. The saying goes, "Actions speak louder than words." But words cut to the heart and soul. Words impact self-esteem and self-image. They can make you think twice about doing something in order to avoid the bullies. Some times no matter what you do those verbal abusers come back to bite anyways. All most anyone can fall into the bullier or victim position. And, I mean anyone of all ages, young to...adult. This type is so hard to identify because it can happen without conscience knowledge of it. I would advise tyring to tell an adult but also go to the person causing the problem. Tell that person what is going on, in a polite and friendly way, because chances are that person may not be aware of bullying you.

Cyber.

Personally, I haven't seen this arise yet within the people I care about. However, cyber bullying still exists. Steps have been taken to vigorously stop this type, which may be why I am not seeing it in my home community. Does not mean though cyber bullying has disappeared completely. People monitor sites that host cyber bullying, but notify an adult if you see any sign of someone being cyber bullied. The Internet can be the worst place, so I cannot stress getting the attention of help in order to stop cyber bullying.

Bullies develop any where and at times without them even knowing. Get the attention of authorities or adults. When you find an adult, make sure the adult can actually help you because the adult could even worsen the problem rather than solve it.

Bullies lead to emotional and mental distress. We need to put a stop to such a life scarring problem. So many good kids are out there being bullied. If only just a hand full of these bullies are stopped, many more kids could be free of a damaged life. Stop the torture. Stop the bullying.