October 2015 National Bullying Prevention and Awareness Month
Has your teen ever felt victimized by a repeatedly aggressive, harassing person? Has your teen been hurt by cruel words that gain popularity on social media? Encourage him or her to move from victim to change-agent. While victims have been harmed by others and are not to blame for being targeted, they can control the choices they make to overcome bullying.
The Victim
A victim might feel:
- Helpless.
- Alone.
- Without resources.
- Depressed or angry.
You can recognize that a victim:
- Has a voice–can speak up and say aloud the impact of the bullying.
- Has people to rely on–whether friends, parents, teachers, or mentors.
- Can affect the environment of his or her school. Often change will not occur until someone decides to be a leader and assert that certain behavior is unacceptable.
How can you help a victim become a change-agent?
- Focus on the future: Inspire a victim to break out of the moment and combat despair. Ask your teen to take a larger view of his or her life by creating a vision for the future.
- Decide what matters: Ask a victim of bullying to express what matters most to him or her. What qualities in themselves do your teens work to develop? What written or spoken words will help a former victim express purpose and push back against a bully?
- Involve others: Victims have developed a sense of empathy for struggling people that others may not possess. Their experience puts victims in a unique position to comfort others and to call for change in a personal and powerful way.
Next week, read about how to help BYSTANDERS and SILENT WITNESSES become change-agents.
Sources on file; available upon request.