| How Do I Help My Friend Who Is Being Bullied? | Bullying | How Do I Help My Friend Who Is Being Bullied? | <div class="ExternalClass7B1BEBB618754B35BB60D3942C82B7C8"><p><span style="font-family:tahoma;font-size:17.3333px;">My friend is getting
bullied and I want to help but I don't know how? Can you help?</span><br></p></div> | <div class="ExternalClassA8C17E16C23E45D0ABF8F9837F9A490C"><p><span style="font-family:tahoma;font-size:17.3333px;">Hi Courtney,</span></p><p><span style="font-family:tahoma;font-size:17.3333px;">Thanks for emailing in and getting some help for your friend. There are ways you can help, your friend can help, and the school can help. For starters, hopefully you will tell her/him about this website, and she can come take a look. Within these tips, there may be some ideas that she has not tried to help stop all of this bullying.</span></p><p><a href="/Pages/tip-are-you-being-bullied.aspx?Topic=Bullying"><span style="font-family:tahoma;font-size:17.3333px;">http://www.yourlifeyourvoice.org/v2/Pages/tip-are-you-being-bullied.aspx?Topic=Bullying</span></a></p><p><a href="/Pages/tip-how-to-deal-with-bullying.aspx?Topic=Bullying"><span style="font-family:tahoma;font-size:17.3333px;">http://www.yourlifeyourvoice.org/v2/Pages/tip-how-to-deal-with-bullying.aspx?Topic=Bullying</span></a></p><p><a href="/Pages/bullying.aspx"><span style="font-family:tahoma;font-size:17.3333px;">http://www.yourlifeyourvoice.org/v2/Pages/bullying.aspx</span></a></p><p><span style="font-family:tahoma;font-size:17.3333px;">We know kids can be terribly mean, but we want your friend to know that she does not have to change for anyone – just herself if there IS something she wants to change. Tell her what her strengths are. Remind her what she is good at. Watch uplifting shows with her and be sure you are doing fun things that you both like. Invite more friends into your circle. Widening your circle of friends just adds more fun and interest to a group, and she will also have more people to look out for her back.</span></p><p><span style="font-family:tahoma;font-size:17.3333px;">We do not know what she has tried so far to make it stop. At some point, you may need to tell a teacher and if no steps are taken by the teacher to get to the bottom of this, then take it to the school office. A lot of schools are starting to set up specific consequences for kids who are bullying. Some schools are even taking a "no tolerance" approach in which some consequences are given even on the first offense. </span></p><p><span style="font-family:tahoma;font-size:17.3333px;">Ignoring the bullies is one good approach, but there are some others too if that is not working. Throw some humor back at them by saying, "Thank you very much" or "Boy that's original." Smile back at them. When a bully sees that he or she has upset you, in their minds, they win. Catch one of the guys/girls unexpectedly one day maybe when her friends are not around, and give her a genuine compliment. They might think before speaking next time she sees you. </span></p><p><span style="font-family:tahoma;font-size:17.3333px;">Practice these things with your friend:</span></p><p><span style="font-family:tahoma;font-size:17.3333px;">Display confidence. Walk with your shoulders back, your head up, and a smile on your face. Greet people, give good eye contact or give a genuine compliment to someone.</span></p><p><span style="font-family:tahoma;font-size:17.3333px;">Remind your friend to stick close to her friends, and stand up for other students if she sees them get picked on. If she is caring towards others, they will want to be around her or will be more likely to stand up for her if they see it happen. </span></p><p><span style="font-family:tahoma;font-size:17.3333px;">Tell your friend that you are there for her, and if she needs an extra listening ear, the hotline is here for her.</span></p><p><span style="font-family:tahoma;font-size:17.3333px;">Laura, Crisis Counselor</span></p></div> | 16 | | |
