Bullying

If you are being repeatedly hurt, or verbally abused, by somebody, then that is bullying. There are lots of types of bullying but it can include:

• bullying because people think you are different than others
• cyberbullying: which means people are targeting you online which is often done anonymously
• homophobic: meaning that the bullying is based on your sexual orientation
• sexist: where bullying is focused on you being of the opposite sex
• sizeist: this type of bullying refers to your body size
• racist: which means that bullying focuses on your skin colour or ethnicity
• religious: where bullying is based on your beliefs or faith.

Bullying might just happen once or it can happen over a long time and bullying can happen to anyone. Bullying can happen in different forms and can happen online and/or face to face (in person), forms of bullying include:

• Verbal: this can include continuous; name calling, teasing, mocking, taunting and threats.
• Physical: this includes any form of; physical violence, intimidating behaviour, theft or the intentional damage of possessions.
• Emotional: this can include; tormenting, ridiculing, humiliation, setting people up and spreading rumours.
• Cyber: this is the misuse of digital technologies to bully a person or a group, typically through messages or actions that are threatening and/or intended to cause offence, anxiety or humiliation.

For more information on bullying, click here to visit the Young Minds website, or click here to visit the Childline website where you can also find out about accessing support online or over the phone.