Tips to help you deal with bullying – how to stop it
Don’t ignore it – bullying won’t go away and it could get worse
Tell someone you trust – this could be a friend, a teacher or your parents. They won’t blame you and they will be able to help. This isn’t ‘snitching’. You’ll feel a lot better if you tell someone what’s going on – you won’t feel like you’re on your own. If you find it difficult to talk about it, you could try writing it down and giving it to someone you trust.
It’s not your fault – nobody deserves to be bullied. You are not the problem, the bully is.
Make a diary – write down what’s happened and how you feel. It can be hard to remember things, so it’s a good idea to keep a record of what happened, when and where.
Keep evidence – keep nasty emails and text messages
Stay in a group – don’t go anywhere by yourself, bullies will be less likely to approach you if you’re with a group of friends.
Avoidance – try and avoid places where you know the bullies will be. It doesn’t seem fair that you have to do this, but it’s a good way to get away from the bullying.
Defend yourself but don’t fight back – you could get into trouble and you could get hurt. It might make the situation worse.
Be strong - Try to act confident even if you don’t feel it. Bullies take advantage of weaker people. If you seem like you’re confident and in control, they will feel less confident.
Stand tall – standing upright will make you feel bigger and more confident.
Sometimes asking the bully to repeat what they said can put them off – bullies are often not brave enough to repeat the remark exactly so they tone it down a bit. If they repeat it you will have made them do something they hadn’t planned on doing, which gives you some control of the situation.
Tell the bully to stop – practise what you’re going to say so that you can tell them clearly and firmly ‘stop’, ‘don’t do that’ etc this will make you sound more confident and more of a threat.
Calmly walk away – showing that you’re not just going to stand there and take it shows that you’re not an easy target.
Don’t panic – try not to let them see that they’re having an affect on you. Don’t get angry or upset.
Make new friends – making new friends will give you confidence and make you feel better about yourself.
Get involved in activities - this will keep you busy and introduce you to people who share similar interests. Self defence or martial arts classes may be a good idea. This is not so that you can attack people, but so that you are able to defend yourself if people attack you. This could increase your confidence if you know you are capable of standing up for yourself.