Photo by RODNAE Productions
One of the staggering societal issues today is bullying and its impact. The people and the government are scrambling to find ways how to prevent this behavior from occurring and, more importantly, how to stop its devastating effect.
If there is one act that is so unacceptable, that is the act of bullying.
A National Bullying Prevention Center survey shows that one out of every five students is reported to be bullied. Bullying can occur almost anywhere and with anyone but is seen to be most rampant within the school systems. What made this action so offensive is the possibility of a lingering serious overall health implication it would cause to both the victim of the bullying and the bully itself.
Caroleann Rice’s book The Ladybug And The Bully Frog tells a tale of how a group of animal friends can’t play at the pond because of the threat of a bully named Milton the Frog. The book is insightful and full of inspiring messages for its young readers that the power of love and friendship could overcome challenges and adversities.
Bullying & Its Impacts
Why is bullying unacceptable?
First off, bullying is part of a chain reaction that was not stemmed off at the first instance of it possibly occurring. Bullying is described as trying to inflict harm, distress, intimidate, or coerce someone against their own will. It is often associated with tyranny or acts of oppression, intending to cause power imbalance in favor of the aggressor.
For the action to be considered bullying, the aggressive behavior should typically include a show of physical strength as part of intimidation, making threats, verbal intimidation, abuse of influence or authority, etc., and these behaviors should be repetitive.
What causes the aggressor to become a bully? Let’s not discount the bully yet; after all, everyone has their version of a background story.
Studies have shown that “bullies” result from traumatic or highly stressful relationships or experiences. An individual becomes a bully because of extreme fear or pain that they have undergone in the past.
These traumatic experiences could lead anyone to react negatively, which is a perfectly human and natural reaction. Everyone shies or wants to avoid situations where they’d feel pain, physically or emotionally. For instance, an individual who has a complicated home life where there is an existence of domestic abuse and violence would tend to mask their feelings in public for fear of being ridiculed because of their home life situation.
Bullying is a mask that bullies put on either as a show of denial of their situation or as their defensive reaction against an intolerable environment.
The best defense to stop the spread of bullying is to prevent a person from becoming a bully; if not, it leads to another profound effect – a person becoming a victim of bullying.
What are the effects on victims of bullying?
Kids or adults who are being bullied negatively experience physical, mental, and emotional health issues. They’re likely to go through severe anxiety, depression, sadness, loneliness, social isolation, insomnia, and so on. Worse case, they’d develop physical health complications such as digestive disorders, cardiac diseases, etc.
Ward Off Bullying
Preventing bullying should be a two-way process: to help stop a person from becoming a bully and aid the healing process of someone who is a victim of bullying.
How?
Family and friends should pay attention if something unusual happens to the child or the adult. If the person is distancing themselves from other people or gatherings, that is a warning sign that something is up. Something is wrong if they’re showing signs of being raucous or violent.
Support systems should be visible, available, and easily accessible to anyone going through these circumstances.
These people should always receive constant reassurance and emotional support. Protect against retaliation and aggression through appropriate agencies that can intervene if needed. Always provide opportunities where the individuals can socially grow, develop new friendships, and have a venue where they can freely express their thoughts and feelings without being prejudiced. There should also be a constant learning process where the individual practices self-love and mindfulness.
Most significantly, awareness and knowledge about bullying and its impact should be shared and spread to everyone as much as possible.
Lessons to be Learned
Perhaps the most effective way of preventing the spread of bullying is to learn from past experiences and mistakes and to ensure that these are not repeated.
Caroleann Rice’s The Ladybug And The Bully Frog provides an excellent example of how bullying can impact an entire community. The book is a good reference for the young audience on encountering and overcoming not only bullying but all challenges life would throw at people throughout their lives.
Grab a copy of The Ladybug And The Bully Frog on Amazon, or visit the author’s website at www.solomonthesnail.com.
