Bullying is an issue of concern among school-aged children, which can have serious health consequences, including psychological and emotional problems. It involves negative aggressive behavior, where children that perceive themselves as more powerful due to their popularity or physical strength, tend to repetitively harm or control others. Bullying can take the form of physical assault, verbal abuse, making threats, or even social exclusion. Children who have been bullied need support to help them overcome the serious consequences of bullying such as mental health problems that can easily lead to suicide.
There are various resources that victims of bullying can exploit to help them overcome the associated trauma such as teachers, counselors, calling 911, calling or texting 988, school principals, school superintendents, the State Department of Education, U.S. Department of Education, or the U.S. Department of Justice (Stopbullying.gov, 2022). Stopbullying.gov can be a valuable resource for victims of bullying as it provides various resources from which individuals can get help as well as information for the youth, parents, teachers, and the public to help them prevent bullying. When facing an immediate danger of being harmed or when physically assaulted, a person should immediately call 911 for immediate support. Those feeling helpless or thinking of suicide are advised to call 988 to receive immediate emotional and psychological support as they would get someone to talk to about their concerns and the problems they are experiencing (Stopbullying.gov, 2022).
Children mentally affected by bullying can talk to a counselor or seek mental health support from mental health centers to receive psychological support and help them overcome any symptoms of anxiety, sadness, or self-care problems that they may have. Most hospitals have psychiatric clinics and counseling centers that can provide strategies and interventions to overcome negative feelings caused by bullying. Teachers and school counselors are in a good position to address bullying in schools and help children that have been bullied (Swank et al., 2019). The collaboration of school counselors and teachers has been identified as one of the ways of preventing bullying in schools by implementing strategies to address the issue (Foon et al., 2020). The school counselors and teachers work together with school principals and superintendents to help school children that have been bullied (Stopbullying.gov, 2022). Foon et al. (2020) identified signs of bullying in schools as one of the barriers that affect the effectiveness of bullying prevention strategies. Therefore, if victims of bullying report these cases to the teachers, this may improve the effectiveness of such programs. Suppose the school fails to effectively address cases of bullying associated with race, gender, disability, sexual orientation, or religion, victims of bullying can seek assistance from the State and U.S. Departments of Health and the U.S. Department of Justice (Stopbullying.gov, 2022). Every state has enacted anti-bullying policies or laws that are used to address the issue of bullying among children and young people. Reporting individuals involved in bullying can help prevent the short and long-term effects of bullying.
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