Anti-Bullying Day: My Story
What being bullied in high school actually looked like, and the mental toll nobody plans for.
A little #throwback and some #antibullyingday pink. Still one of my favorite shirts of all time... and dresses.... and haircuts.
Bullying can happen in many forms. Whether it's emotionally making somebody feel bad, pressuring them, or physically - like I got it in highschool.
I was a large, loud softie in highschool who rarely fought back; and this made me an easy target. During PE class if the teachers weren't around it wasn't uncommon to have my face shoved into the dirt (with a knee in the back of my head) or a basketball thrown at my head. I had rocks thrown at my windows, dog shits set on fire on my porch, and threatening phone calls and voicemails. It peaked at the end of grade 9 when during the last day of school water fight I had 6 guys kick me on the ground almost breaking my ribs, in front of the whole school. For the 2 weeks following this I basically stayed locked in my house out of fear of repercussions from the bullies 'friends' who had stolen yearbooks to cut out my photo so they could find me.
Having beena bully at times myself, I knew why these guys were doing this to me - and I felt bad for them. I knew that their issues weren't with me, they were within themselves but I was an easy target to take it out on. I knew they were going to do it to someone, and figured I could handle it better than many. I knew that once highschool was over, I'd get away from them and it, and life would go on.
What I didn't plan on was the mental toll it was taking on me. Even when you empathise with the bully, having someone (or multiple people) constantly trying to tear you down takes a toll that can take a lifetime to recover from, or cause you to bully others in a similar way.
Part of being a man means you need to be tough enough to deal with your own shit... Bullshit.
If you're being bullied or maybe are unintentionally might be bullying someone, don't keep it to yourself.
Talk to someone, get help, and let's make bullying a thing of the past.
#lifeadvicewiththor
#antibullying
#dontbeabully
#dontbeatoughguy
