Bullying

By John Tan

     Bullying is no foreign concept. Bullying knows no boundary, race nor age and comes in various forms whether it’d be a perpetual teasing or an infliction of harm on someone. Bullying is bad and it has to stop as it is capable of leaving permanent damage in the victims ‘lives. To quote BulliesOut, a registered charity in Cardiff (UK), ‘bullying is bad enough when it happens just once, but when it’s consistent, it becomes a very serious problem’.

Based on the information given by the U.S Department of Health & Human Services on its website, it was found that the victims may experience poor performance in their studies. They will be unable to concentrate in class with the bullies constantly watching over them like an eagle watching its prey resulting in them being constantly afraid and on the constant lookout for their surroundings. Instead of focusing in class, they will be in fear and eager to return home. This will turn into a daily routine and cause the loss of interest in school which may further lead them to play truant.

According to the Department of Education and Training based in the State Government of Victoria, bullying may cause the victim to experience a change of personality among the many impacts. For instance, prior to the occurrence of the bullying, some of them were cheerful and confident but due to the negative words thrown at them on a daily basis, they lost their confidence. It is no rocket science to imagine how bad and worthless they feel about themselves. They developed new personalities which are shy, nervous and scared.

Furthermore, bullying can cause victims to experience grave health issues such as bulimia. In situations where the victims especially girls who are criticized for their weight will resort to skipping their meals as the solution to the problem, thinking that’s the only way to fit in. Besides that, the victims may also experience a change in their sleeping pattern as there is a possibility they might develop a sleeping disorder. There may be cases where the victims are unable to sleep due to having nightmares of the bullies bullying them.

Having personal experience with this, I can say the risk and effects of bullying are real. I was and still picked on simply because I am different in many ways. For instance, I constantly get laughed at or underestimated for not being able to converse in Mandarin or any other Chinese Dialects. Besides that, I was also picked on for being small in size. The bullying not only made me feel miserable but it also made me feel that there was something wrong with me. Luckily I was able to deal with it in a healthy way. I started having the fondness for the art of writing as it allows me to express my feelings, thoughts, and opinions. That definitely helped me to cope with many difficult situations. Unfortunately, not everyone is able to deal with bullying the same way. In some extreme cases, the victims take their own lives.

To conclude, bullying is not beneficial in any way and it needs to stop. I would say to all the victims out there that you are not alone and there is hope because things will get better. As for the bullies out there, please stop and try to put yourself in the victim’s shoes. You would not like being bullied for just being who you are.

                                            It starts with you. Stop Bullying.

Shout out to my sister, Jane and Sue Peng for helping :) 

And to the readers, thanks for the 7560 views :) 

Sources 

1   1.The Impact of Bullying . 2015. The Impact of Bullying . [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.education.vic.gov.au/about/programs/bullystoppers/Pages/impact.aspx. [Accessed 20 April 2015]. 

2    2. Effects of Bullying | StopBullying.gov. 2015. Effects of Bullying | StopBullying.gov. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.stopbullying.gov/at-risk/effects/. [Accessed 20 April 2015].

3.     3. The Effects of Bullying - Bullies Out. 2015. The Effects of Bullying - Bullies Out. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.bulliesout.com/the-effects-of-bullying. [Accessed 20 April 2015].