Cyberbullying – How to Stop the 21st Century’s E-bullying

Ryan hanged himself in a family bathroom after sharing his awkward personal story to a newly found pretty and popular friend – the news took everyone’s breath away. She turned out to be a bully, made Ryan think that she likes him and he started sharing his personal stories with her. He later found out that the girl and her friends were making fun of his awkward stories and copy pasting them on AOL Instant Messenger. Rumors about Ryan was spread that he was gay. Poor him, he thought that this new friend will be his best friend forever, who knew he will turn be the reasons of Ryan taking his own life in such a brutal way!? 7th-grade student Amanda loved to socialize and began using video chat to meet new people. Until one day when a stranger convinced her to go topless on camera. He took her photo and started blackmailing her, later the image started circulating on the internet. A Facebook profile was made using her nude picture as a profile image. The victim found no escape from the internet and one day she hanged herself to death.

What is cyber bullying?

There was a time when people used to bully each other in person. With the advancement of technology, either you are home or surrounded by people, cyberbullying is something that can happen any time of the day. Cyberbullying is the latest form of bullying that is done using electronic devices. Equipment such as mobile phones, cameras, computers, tablets and the other communication tools are used in e-bullying. Example of cyberbullying includes being threatened by someone, humiliated, spreading rumours, sharing embarrassing pictures, or awkward videos of a victim on social media without his/her consent.

Effects of cyberbullying

Children, teens and adult - a person from every walk of life can be the victim of e-bullying. It can make you feel completely disturbed which can result in many feeling embarrassed that they are going through such an overwhelming time, and not knowing where they can ask for help and support. Many teens feel unable to reveal it to their parents because they feel embarrassed and wonder whether they will be judged, told to ignore it or close deactivate their social media account which they might not want to do. Bullying can lead kids to suicidal thoughts, sometimes continuing till maturity. In a research, grownups who were bullied as a youth were three times more likely to have thoughts about taking their own lives. Children who are cyberbullied are most likely to: • Get poor grades • Have lower self-esteem • Develop bad habit of drinking • Use drugs • Find excuses to skip school • Feel isolated • Feel vulnerable • Feel dissatisfied with their lives • Feel humiliated • Get feelings of depression • Withdraw from family and friends, spending their time alone • Lose weight • Avoid social events • Feel suicidal

How to stop cyberbullying?

The consequences of cyberbullying can be fatal. Children can explore safe ways to use technology by preventing e-bullying.

Don’t respond to bullies

If someone tries to bully you, remember that all a bully wants is your reaction that he/she is already expecting. If you respond, it gives him or her power over you

Don’t react

Getting back at the bully turns you into one and strengthens the bully’s actions.

Reach out for help

Involve your parents if you are being bullied. If you can’t then approach your teacher or school counsellor – they usually know what to do in such situations. If you’re really anxious about it and can’t say anything to anyone, see if there’s a way to report the incident anonymously at school.

Take action if you see someone bullying

The best thing you can do if you see a person bullying another person is trying to stop him by taking a stand against it. If you can’t stop it, support the person being bullied. If the person’s a friend, you can listen and see how to help.