What if I’m a Bully?

Getting Help To Stop Your Bullying Behaviour

If you think you’ve bullied someone and you’re here reading this, congratulations on recognizing what’s going on and taking your first steps to change it! It takes real courage to look at ourselves in the mirror, admit there’s a problem, and go somewhere for help.

It’s never too late to try and change your behaviour and stop bullying. Adults understand that there’s always a reason behind bullying. While this doesn’t make bullying okay, we know that students bully others because they are not feeling good about themselves or because they are having trouble dealing with something painful in their lives. Kids will often use bullying as a way to get attention and feel accepted. The bullying makes people notice them and gives them a sense of power. But there are much better ways to gain acceptance and respect from others – without hurting anyone!

If you are bullying because you are feeling sad, angry, misunderstood or hurt, you NEED TO GET HELP. Treating others meanly won’t make your problems go away and it won’t help you feel better in the long run.  If you continue to bully, you will lose many friends over time as they begin to recognize that your treatment of others is not something they want to be a part of.

Find an adult you trust and share your thoughts and feelings with them. Maybe you can see a guidance counsellor, nurse, teacher or vice-principal at school and they can help you get the help you need. Together you can work on ways of dealing with your feelings and feeling accepted without being a bully.