What is bullying? When we hear of bullying, more often we associate it with something that happens at school but bullying can affect anyone, of any age, within any social setting and it can effect you whether you are being bullied, have witnessed bullying or even if you are the bully. It is defined as a behaviour that is intended to hurt someone either physically or emotionally and will be repeated or habitual. It may take many forms such as being physically aggressive, more subtle such as use of intimidation, name calling, criticising, exclusion, ignoring or embarrassing you in public, and more recently with the growth of social media comes cyber bullying.
The effects of bullying Regardless of whether it occurred in childhood or adulthood, or even long after it has stopped the impact can be huge. Bullying can affect your self-esteem and confidence, cause emotional distress that can lead to feelings of sadness, loneliness, depression, anxiety and contribute to health complaints. If it occurs in the workplace you may even decide to leave a job you loved.
Get help to deal with bullying If you are experiencing bullying in any form, don't struggle alone. Tell someone you can trust whether that is a teacher, friend, work colleague or family member and get help to deal with the bully. Even if the bullying occurred in the past but still affects you now talking to someone can help. Listed below are some useful websites that can offer further advise and support.
www.mentalhealthsupport.co.uk/AdultBullying www.bullying.co.uk www.nhs.uk/Livewell/Bullying/Pages/Bullyinghome
