Childhood should be full of fun, excitement and meeting new people. Unfortunately, sometimes it doesn’t happen like that and we get picked on and bullied. As a parent or carer, we don’t like to think about children being bullied or even worse, being a bully. But there is a good chance you will have to deal with it at some point, so we wanted to give some advice for those being bullied.
Check out our other blog: Five Reasons why Acting Classes for Kids are Beneficial
Here are our five top tips for children being bullied at school, or somewhere else:
No matter what the bully tells you, you do not have to keep quiet. You may think it will only make the situation worse, but it won’t. In fact, that old age, ‘a problem shared is a problem halved’ is very true. When you keep all your problems in you can feel anxious and overwhelmed.
Tell a parent, teacher or trusted friend and, importantly, don’t retaliate. That’s exactly what they want. No matter what age you are, take the higher ground. Someone can help you and there is always someone to listen.
Don’t accept this is the way it is. Your school life can be challenging enough without being bullied as well. This isn’t acceptable and it’s not OK for you to feel scared, threatened or intimidated by anyone else. Don’t get angry at the bully, keep calm but be resolute: it’s not right and I will speak to someone because I do not allow this.
It’s a great idea to record what is happening in case you need to return to it in the future for evidence. It’s also a useful way to express pent up feelings. You could record it by writing it in a journal, recording it on your phone if you have one or writing it in a document on the computer.
You should always be your number one priority and be kind to yourself. But when you’re getting bullied it’s easy to self-blame and think you brought this on yourself – you didn’t. This is not your fault, and it won’t be forever. Talk to yourself positively, you’re doing the best you can and you are a good person.
This is a great resource for those who are being bullied. You can also speak to Childline who have trained professionals on-hand to help you. Also, within your child’s school, there should be a counsellor or a trusted teacher that you can speak to to help you through.