Blogpost 1: Kinds of effects in bullying

There are many people who, at some point in their lives, encounter what is known as a bully. There are a lot of them and they exist in every place with a group of people who go everyday such as school. Actually, not just in school, there is also in workplaces, fastfoods and many others. They come from all walks of lives, all ages, all genders, all races, and all cultures.

One of the things I found is that the effects of bullying, both for the bully and the bullied, can be felt even in adulthood. If left unchecked, it shapes the way we live. Next, they generally find someone who is either weaker than them, different from them or having something that can compromise that person's reputation. Though it's usually the first one. Another is that different people react differently to those events. Some are lucky and eventually are left alone and some are not so lucky. They are subjected to different kinds of stuff ranging from childish acts to those outright cruel. These can either toughen the person or create anger in them. 

Who remembers the infamous Columbine High School massacre of 1999? For a brief info, that's when two high school students went on a rampage that left scores of their fellow students dead and the nation completely stunned. The country blamed the game Doom, which the two were avid gamers of, and rallied to take the game down instead of focusing on the deeper psychological issues these troubled boys dealt with.

Yeah, these two.

My first brush with a bully was at fifth grade. I was not even sure how it started. But it went on till I decided to seek assistance from the authorities(namely, my parents and the teachers). I thought that it would stop the incessant pushing and paper throwing and rumor mongering but no. In fact, it merely compelled them to continue, even more than before. 

As years go by, bullying is still existent but less subtle. Probably from slight maturation. Even then, the effect remains the same or sometimes worse.

In an article by Alice Walton at Forbes website entitled The psychological effects of bullying last well into adulthood, study finds, the author states that in a survey, they found out that each one falls at one category of bullying. These are the bullied who never bullied others, the bully and the ones who switch roles. 

The author said that kids in "the bullied" section had greater risk for depressions and anxiety disorders at adulthood. The "switcher role" section most likely suffered from these depressions already, including suicidal thoughts and panic disorders. Interestingly, the bullies did not have these risks but instead are at risk for antisocial personality disorder.

Alice Walton added "The fact that depression was such a risk in later life, for both sexes, the authors say, provides strong evidence that being a victim of bullying or being both a victim and a perpetrator is a risk factor for serious emotional problems…independent of preexisting problems.”  So bullying does have its risks. In fact, this would pose a big problem for us and the next generation.

In another similar article by Steven Reinberg of Health US News called Childhood bullying can leave lifelong scars, it is stated that kids that had been bullied and also bullied other kids seemed to be in the worst lot. They had thoughts of depression and hurting themselves when they were adults. They have the worst long-term outcomes.

So bullying does have its risks. That's why intervention is so important. But it's still like a survival of the fittest thing to some.

Yeah, right.

Taken from the aforementioned article, Reinberg says a known quote, “Bullying is not just a harmless rite of passage or an inevitable part of growing up”

It's true but society keeps pushing it to become a fact. That is what mustn't happen as it will become a fish-eat-fish world in school, as well as creating more Columbine incidents. Hopefully it will take a turn so the next generation won't have the same experience. 

It is in the hand of that person's parents and friends whether that person suffers or not. Intervention is really important in these cases as even a person's life may be at stake.

By the way, are you the bully, one of the bullied or both?