Bullying · 3:18am Jun 17th, 2019
It’s a scary word, isn’t it? It’s scary to realize that we live in a world where people pick on each other just for fun.
It’s scary to remember experiencing it for 5 years of your life.
You see, I had always been advanced in my schoolwork. Especially in reading and writing. When I was in Kindergarten, my teacher allowed me to take some skills classes with 1st graders. You see, ‘skills’ in my elementary school was pretty much extra reading practice for all kids. During the first year of my advanced classes, nobody really talked to me. I kept to myself and did my work quietly. Skills was a pretty short class, so the 45 minutes I spent with older kids didn't really faze me. In 1st grade, I was sent to a 1.5 hour reading class with 2nd graders. Things were a little hard, but that was nothing compared to the years to come.
Then came 2nd grade.
That year, I was taking 3rd grade reading classes. Something I haven’t mentioned before is the fact that I had ADHD as a child. I still do, but it manifests itself in different ways than in my youth. When I was younger, my disorder made me extremely quick to anger. I would cross my arms and pucker out my lips whenever something upset me.
That was the thing that people liked to make fun of.
Because of the way that I reacted to anything that upset me, I was outcast from the entire class. I was mocked for my issues by everyone. I didn’t even accept that I had an issue until many years later. I was treated like a pariah. I remember crying just by walking down to the classroom because I was scared of what was to come. 3rd grade wasn’t that much better.
I was given the opportunity to skip an entire grade. I completely skipped 4th grade and went straight to 5th. That was the worst of the mockery came. I was being teased the moment that I walked into the classroom on the first day of school. Some kids even asked if I was lost. The good thing about only taking one class a day with the older kids was that I could go back to my friends after it was all over. Now, I couldn’t see any of my friends at all. I spent a lot of time alone. Nobody wanted to be around me. I was told things like “We threw a party because you weren’t here.” “We moved our desks just so that you wouldn’t be part of society.” “Why are you still here?” The worst part was that the kids that seemed to dislike me the most were the ones that sat right next to me. I can barely even talk to new people nowadays without a little voice in my head asking me if I said something wrong, or if they even want me around to begin with.
I get it, I can be annoying, but saying things like that to someone who’s just trying to fit in just isn’t right.
The thing that I learned from all of this is that you shouldn’t discriminate people just because they seem a little weird at first. You should be kind to everyone and accept their differences. Just because someone is younger than you, it doesn't give you a right to pick on them. They have feelings and bullying can seriously damage a person for the rest of their life.
If you are being picked on, or if you ever have been, just know that you’re not alone, and I’m there for anyone that needs me. Please, share this blog post. I know that, somewhere, there is someone who needs to read it.
I know how you feel, Starlight. Even though my experiences were close to 50 years ago, the mental pain and feelings of not fitting in, of not being liked or appreciated, remain.
Mine didn't stop there; those experiences carried on through high school and early adulthood, and even involved mental and physical abuse from family and people I attended school with.
I hope that you have found the help that you need to recover. It is much more available than in my day. Don't stop telling your story until you find someone to help you, if you haven't already. And always remember that you are beautiful and special just as you are! Don't let anyone tell you otherwise, either!
You take care of yourself, and if you ever need someone to talk with, I'll be here.
And I'll be sure to pass your story on to others. You've shown a lot of courage and confidence to keep going despite all you've faced. Stay true to who you are and who you want to be.
And remember: Friendship is Magic!
I'm sorry you've had to deal with all of that. And I understand bullying. I lived with it through most of school. I'm glad that you're using your experience to open up to others. And maturing more than the bullies themselves.
To anyone who is being bullied, it get's better. It may not feel like it but it does. And if you need help, find a friend.
That... Really stood out to me.
See, I'm half russian, and in my school I was mocked for everything from my name to the food I brought from home.
Called a commie, a red, or a terrorist was delightful. Especially in middle school was the worst of the teasing/bullying.
As it was... I hated associating myself with my heritage. It was disgusting to me, I even dreamed of changing my name, of becoming normal.
But... If there's something I've learned, its to embrace my heritage.
I embrace it, and I don't give a shit about anything anyone has to say.
But it also taught me to embrace OTHERS' differences. Always. And everything.
So, yeah. This story stood out to me.
*Hugs you* I'm here if you ever need to talk
Well I remember Elementary School days were rather hard for me. It certainly wasn't fun. Sorry you had to go through these things
I never was bullied much, Since I was homeschooled. but I know I was extremely shy, heck I was scared of little kids. But I can clearly remember one experience from when I was younger. I don’t know why, but it stuck with me, guess it’s cause it’s the only time I’ve ever really been bullied. I was at the farm, some kid asked me something, and I froze up, I just stared, I didn’t even try speaking, I was petrified. And you know what? She laughed at me. Just laughed. I don’t understand you, but I know the things it can cause, suicide, shootings, all sorts of things. I feel for you, I cannot relive your pain, but I can hope, And I can believe, that one day things may just get a little bit better. You’re brave to be open about this. And I’m glad you’re trying to raise awareness. People don’t understand the pain they cause. Whether they think it’s funny, think it’s not a big deal, or are just sick in the head, I’ll do all I can, if not much, to get rid of this twisted verbal abuse.
Have been bullied but never said anything
I've been bullied as well. Never feel as if you're alone in this.
I've been bullied everyday when I was in grade school. A bunch of boys would hurt me physically by imitating WWE moves. I did fight back but it made things a lot worse that I got into trouble, which was unfair when they should be the only ones to receive punishment. There was no anti-bullying campaign and there were no ways to deal with bullies. Even worse is that one teacher mocked me for one year whenever she's in charge of the class.
Fast forward to high school, the bullying lessened and thankfully, there's a campaign that prevents bullying. I had a classmate whom I consider my best friend, but it only lasted for a year because he made fun of my weight before graduating high school. I cut him out of my life, feeling backstabbed that he destroyed our friendship, and I never wanted to see him again.
Right now, I feel bothered whenever I look back at these terrible memories, which contributes to my current struggles with depression. Bullying is the number one reason why I don't want to have kids. I don't want them to experience the unfair and cruel world.
You know what is even worse? Being the bully. I was a bully for a while, and it was awful! I went from a sweet, innocent child to a sadistic, cruel person. I mocked others, and made snide comments at anything they said. I later regretted bullying, because I was left friendless, and lonely. No-body wanted to come within thirty feet of me, literally. I turned my life around with the help of a new girl though, and felt better to have a friend. Everyone forgave me for being such a tyrant. I would definitely NOT let those bullies get the best of you! There is nothing more satisfying than making the victim cry. And your friends aren't good friends if they just ditched you like that. Don't stop being smart. Those fools will all wither when they have to go and work at Mcdonalds, while you have an awesome job, and get payed incredible amounts of money. They'll regret being such jerks to someone younger than them, trust me.
This post reminded me of something that I was told once. I'm not sure if this would count as bullying. Yet, my grandmother (on my biological father's side of the family) had said that she "didn't want someone like me around her or anywhere near her". For context, I was born prematurely and have Cerebral Palsy on top of being diagnosed as legally blind (actually near-sighted).
I've also had an instance where an English professor had kept giving me bad grades. At first, I was told that the work I did wasn't up to par. So, I fixed the assignments that I was given. Apparently, I eventually came to find out that the reason for her being antagonistic to me came down to me being of a different race than she was and she didn't like that I was in the class she taught.
I say "apparently" because I'm still not sure if it really was the case as to why I was treated the way that I was.
Also... while still not as frequent as before, I have (and still) deal with family members who have said things that... haven't always been the most reassuring... or confidence-boosting.
If you ever want to talk, I'm here
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Interesting perspective
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I don't like to talk about it.
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Understandable