Bullying

Feb 20, 2012 14:18

Politics: One Town's War on Gay TeensI read this article yesterday, which is perhaps the most comprehensive article about what's been happening in the Anoka-Hennepin school district I've read so far ( Read more... )

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octobre09 February 20 2012, 15:36:26 UTC
I think my main concern when it comes to my daughters is that they'll be bullied in school. I've honestly thought of home-schooling if only to keep them from that, but I know that the home-schooling itself might bring its own set of bullies.

I was bullied pretty badly as a kid for reasons that are still not clear to me today. I was a shy kid, I was very small and skinny and we moved a lot I guess...I wrote a letter to a friend when I was 12 and it sounded so much like a suicide letter that she showed it to her mom who in turn showed it to mine who in turn went to the school principal. Honest to God, I didn't know anyone knew about it except my friend until just a few years ago. It breaks my heart to think that my mom thought that I might take my own life. I really wouldn't have, I just wanted the pain to go away and that's pretty much what I expressed in the letter. I'm now sure how the school dealt with it, but I know the bullying slowly started to fade away shortly after.

The worst part is that once I was college, yes I found my place and I felt like I fit in. Unfortunately that led to a lot of bad decisions that ended up with me having a drinking problem. I think that being bullied makes you insecure for life unfortunately and that people seek any way to escape. I'm glad I was able to sober myself up and I'm proud of who I am today, but occasionally I'm still that 12 year old girl and I just have to deal with that.

Sorry, I didn't mean to write this long ass respond to your post. It just really hit a nerve with me I guess.

*hugs*

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ardvari February 20 2012, 19:03:48 UTC
One of my biggest concerns when my godmum's girls started school was just that. I didn't want them to get bullied.

And I think that kids need to experience school, especially high school, because it teaches you a ton about yourself. Still, with the issue of bullying today, I don't know what I'd do.

I wasn't ever actively bullied in school but I certainly wasn't popular. I think what got me through school was the fact that I was super sarcastic and I did have a lot of other things going on outside of school, so I could just go home and get away from everything. I viewed school as a bit of a social experiment and managed to somehow make it okay that way.

I do remember the day one of the guys that bugged us endlessly getting his jaw broken in a fight. They wired his jaw shut and the following month was the most blissfully quiet month ever. If I remember that (fondly, almost, I should say) without ever feeling like I was bullied to the point of wanting to kill myself then I can't imagine what a bullied kid must feel like.

And, just like you, I had the time of my life at university.

I think parents have a really tough job these days because all you can do, really, is make sure you raise strong children, to tell them what's right or wrong, to listen to them, and hope they'll be okay.

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