Bullying

Statistics show that over 56% of young adults have been bullied based on their appearance. Appearance is cited to be the number one aggressor of bullying, with over 51% saying they were bullied on what they looked like. And as we know from our last article, this is mostly due to social media in the modern society - it teaches us that appearance is very important.

From societal pressure to the pressure from your surroundings, young people grow up to believe that they have to be perfect in order to fit in and be accepted. Equally, these trends and social norms which have been set in looking a certain way affects young people’s mental wellbeing and mental development.

These attacks are often made by judging not only one’s appearance but also their body weight, body language and the way they portray themselves. However, this is often disregarded under the category of bullying – which it is. This behaviour inevitably leads young people to feel isolated, and if they are not able to talk about the how being bullied is affecting them, how it’s pressurising and lowering their self-esteem – they can feel stressed, depressed and alone that can lead to mental health issues. Discrimination of race, sexuality, the way people dress should all be considered bullying.

Young people need to understand how to accept and be proud of how they look and respond to, and deal with bullying. It’s also just as important to tackle the bullies themselves to make them realise the potential damage they can cause. Dealing with bullying head on will reduce or even stop negative comments and attacks, leading young people to become more confident in themselves and significantly improving their mental health.

Useful links

Bullying UK website Click here to take a look

Young minds website (bullying) Click here to take a look

Ask Normen website (bullying) Click here to take a look

Kidscape (supporting a child who is being bullied) Click here to take a look