PHYSICAL BULLYING
After The Bullying
Why you should stand up to bullying: the victim's point of view.
Physical bullying has effects that go beyond a black eye or skinned knee. It can cause the victim to feel afraid, angry and upset. This is why you need to stand up to bullying and take action.
Click here to learn about the effects of bullying (DOC)
Here is an example of what happens after someone has been physically bullied. Watch the bullying from the victim, Sarah's, point of view.
Think you know?
The following questions are to help you better understand the effects of physical bullying. Work by yourself or with a friend to come up with answers on your own before looking at our answers.
Questions about the video:
What are some obvious and not so obvious things Sarah is feeling?
- Embarrassed
- Angry
- Scared
- Upset
- Confused
- Feels down about herself and the situation
Why do you think Sarah yells at her mom instead of telling her what happened?
- Sarah feels angry and embarrassed about being bullied.
- It is easier to take these emotions out on others.
- She may also feel like her mom wouldn't understand what happened or how she is feeling so it may be easier to avoid talking about it.
What do you think Sarah is trying to accomplish by staying home from school? How can this make the situation worse?
When a victim is bullied she can feel like everyone is against them. We call this our "worst case scenario thoughts" or WCST. It is easy for Sarah to imagine that everyone in the school is talking about her or what happened. Because Sarah is both scared of being bullied again and embarrassed about what happened, she believes that by avoiding school she can avoid the problem.
Avoiding school doesn't make the problem away and in fact can make things worse..
- If Sarah continues to skip school and class her grades will suffer.
- Avoiding school leaves room for speculation and rumors or gossip may start about her.
- Lastly, avoiding school will give the bully the impression that they "won". This will encourage Susan to bully Sarah even more.
What might be some other reactions victims have to physical bullying?
- Low self-esteem
- Problems concentrating
- Feeling sad
- Being forgetful
- Losing interest in activities they enjoyed
- Trouble sleeping
- Sudden drop in grades or failing a class
- Trouble sleeping
- Skipping school or class
- Using alcohol or drugs
- Using negative "I am" statements
- Avoiding social situations
- Going from happy to sad or angry quickly
Let's take a look at what happens next in If You See Bullying Happening →