Tips for overcoming bullying at school

Many kids struggle at school with bullies. It’s never right to bully someone into doing something or merely for the fun of it.

• Over the years, bullying has increased in schools across the globe with many kids not feeling comfortable or safe in their school environment. Due to this, your child will be more likely to miss, skip, or drop out of school to avoid being bullied.

It can cause an individual to feel very frightened, angry, depressed and totally undermined. The bottom line is that bullying should never be tolerated. Whether you’re the one being bullied, or you’re a teacher or parent who thinks their child is being bullied or engaged in bullying behaviour, here a few steps you can take to deal with the problem.

• Don’t blame yourself
• Confide in someone about the bullying
• Be willing to receive help from others
• Always seek help from a teacher or councillor
• ‘Walk away from the bully. Bullies want to know they have control over your emotions so don’t react with anger or retaliate with physical force. If you walk away, ignore them, or calmly and assertively tell them you’re not interested in what they have to say, you’re demonstrating that they don’t have control over you.
• Protect yourself.If you can’t walk away and are being physically hurt, protect yourself so you can get away. Your safety is the first priority.
• Learn to deal with the stress by finding ways to relieve it which will make you more resilient so you won’t feel overwhelmed by bullying. Exercise, meditation, positive self-talk, muscle relaxation, and breathing exercises are all good ways to manage the stress from bullying.