2 out of 3 teens are bullied across the world each year. There are various ways people can be bullied. Whether it is cyber bullying, verbally, or physical, bullying has serious effects on children, especially teenagers. Bullying has become more severe due to the development of social media, and it is slowly spiraling out of control. Whether it is due to some people over sharing, or the easy access to personal pages and information, social media has made it easier for bullies to strike.
Bullying can have everlasting effects on people. It leads to moderate to severe depression, anxiety, loneliness, changes in eating patterns, and can lead to self-harm issues. The effects of bullying can even carry on to adult hood, where they could potentially become more severe. Children who are bullied are even more likely to stop attending school and even drop out. Some children are so severely bulled that they commit suicide, whether anyone realizes it is going to happen or not. Bullying can even lead to extreme retaliation. For example, “In 12 of 15 school shooting cases in the 1990s, the shooters had a history of being bullied” (stopbullying.gov). You never know what is going on at someone’s home, and by bullying them you can push them right over the edge. A teenager’s mentality is highly unstable as they creep towards adolescents, and emotions are raging with the hormonal changes. Bullying is often detrimental to the confidence that teenagers need to gain.
People who bully tend to be insecure and take their issues out on their peers. They do not have an outlet for their anger out, and often feel relieved to take it out on other people. These kinds of bullies need to be stopped, but teenagers often find it difficult to tell someone about what is happening. From personal experience, it would be awkward to tell a teacher or trusted adults about what is going on, therefore the bullying will continue to happen. Bullies damage their peer’s self esteem, confidence, motivation, and even their reputation. Bullies can even anonymously harass their victims on forums such as www.ask.fm and www.formspring.me. In order to stop the trend, teenagers would have to fight back against the bullies and stick up for each other, which teenagers these days do not often do. It is easier to sit back and watch someone be bullied then to get involved and cause drama. Schools and law enforcement always tell children and teenagers to tell a teacher, or a trusted adult, but in all reality how much can that do? For the most part, bullies just get meaner when someone tells on them, and the bullying usually intensifies. The only way teenagers can really put an end to bullying is to agree not to bully, and stick up for themselves if they are bullied.
Whether it is via social networking sites or verbal, bullying happens worldwide, often among teenagers. As children are turning into adolescents, the changes that happen to them create an outlet for bullies to strike. While already feeling insecure, bullies can physically and emotionally destroy one’s self esteem, confidence, and reputation. People being bullied often suffer from depression and anxiety, and often have a lack of motivation to go to school. Even though school is supposed to be their safe haven, teenagers often do not feel comfortable with telling their teacher if they are being picked on, and if they do sometimes action is not even taken. The only way for teenagers to stop bullying is to vow to never bully, and stick up for those who are rather than running and telling on the bully. Unless things get physical, it is possible to shut down a bully without retaliation, and they can be killed with kindness. The relentless torture can easily be stopped, if everyone was to try and be kind to one another.
