Bullying: Is it Affecting You?

What is bullying?

Bullying is when one person or a group of people repeatedly hurts someone else. Bullying involves hurting someone who is often weaker or less confident. There are many types of bullying, and for young women, bullying usually involves more teasing than hitting. Bullying is often done on purpose and it can happen anywhere, such as at school, in the park, on a sports team, or even at home. Often the person being bullied has a hard time defending herself.

Bullying can be:

• Leaving someone out of group activities on purpose, such as being part of a clique and not letting others join
• Ignoring someone—giving them the “silent treatment”
• Using the Internet, instant messenger, and/or E-mail to hurt others
• Making faces and/or bad gestures with your hands at someone
• Using people to get something you want, such as making friends with someone who is smart just so they can do your homework for you
• Making fun of someone for being “different”
• Forcing someone to do something embarrassing or dangerous in order to join a sports team or social group (also called hazing)
• Hitting, punching, and shoving
• Hair pulling, biting, and pinching
• Threatening and scaring others
• Name-calling, teasing, and gossiping

Did you know that cliques often bully others? When cliques become exclusive and purposely leave out others as part of their circle of friends, this can cause hurt feelings. This is a type of bullying. Keep in mind that it is not bad to have a close group of friends. Yet, leaving out others from your group on purpose and picking on them is bullying!

It is important to know that bullying happens everyday, and it is very common. Keep reading to find out more about bullying and how you can help put an end to it!