I have been mulling over this for days.
I was bullied in year seven. Pretty badly I think. It wasn't physical, just verbal, but even now over 15 years later I still think about it. I'm not hurt anymore and I'm not holding onto any ill will. I just think about how it affected me and how rife bullying is now. I am so glad social media was an unknown entity back then because I think it would have been so much worse. I think about how it made me doubt myself and how awful it made me feel.
Looking back I realise the main instigator probably was just dealing with her own issues and insecurities. She probably saw me as a threat in some ways. I was good at my school work, I had an established group of friends, I was happy. She worked hard to turn those friends against me. And you know what it's like in year seven, kids are easily led!
You know what the irony is? I'm still friends with that group of friends. We still see each other. It actually opened up the door for me to make other friends. It was a truly horrible time and I wouldn't wish it on anyone though.
But now, one of the greatest blessings in my life is my amazing friends. I have friends from school, friends from uni, friends from work and friends from church. They are such incredible people and they make my life better. They have been there with me through good times and crappy times. So for anyone reading this who has been bullied, don't give up. Your life and identity are not defined by one or more insecure people who try and make you feel bad to feel better about themselves. And to my friends, thanks for being the awesome people that you are.
Clarence's bully was wrong about him and my bully was wrong about me.
I hope I can be there for people who are being/have been bullied. We all need to stand up and address this issue. Check out this fact sheet from Beyond Blue for more information:
http://www.youthbeyondblue.com/factsheets-and-info/fact-sheet-20-bullying/
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