I was chubby growing up and I was teased about that. I have big ears, and I was constantly teased about that as well. I have always seemed to be able to fit in and I was always able to make friends, but when I was younger, the teasing made me cry. As I got older, I started repressing these feelings by picking on other children. I did not realize how I was affecting others. I have always wondered how others felt, but never did it occur to me that what I was doing could seriously damage them. I have always felt remorse for things that I've done, but I have never showed it. Recently, I have come to realize that what I have done in the past was just sick. Being picked on was absolutely no excuse for me to do what I did. If I could go back and take everything I did back, I would in a heartbeat. I have experienced a change in view, and no longer will I just stand and watch if I see someone getting bullied.

I was an early bloomer.  Very early. First they targeted my body.  "Do you stuff your bra?" was a common question my classmates asked in fourth grade.  One boy seemed to get a kick out of commenting about how gross I was.  I wore baggy clothing, and jeans that were two sizes too big.  Then I couldn't sit at a lunch table without someone saying :no wonder she is so fat if she eats like that."  I was nine when I first became bulimic.  The violence increased until one classmate was pushing me against walls, pushing me down stairways, stealing my homework, and sexually harassing me by telling sex jokes to other students about me, and shoving items like pencils and rulers down my clothing during presentations. 

I first tried to kill myself when I was nine.  Small things - like being pushed out of line - made me burst into tears.  I had nightmares, never at lunch, and saw my circle of friends change every week, depending on who was willing to talk to me. 

I hardly told my parents about anything.  I had it drilled into me in first grade that tattlers were annoying, and telling someone was useless.  I told a substitute teacher that I was pinned against a wall with a chair; I still do not know if my teacher ever found out.

I did not own my body. I did horrible things, and frequently planned out various complicated ways to kill myself, since my mother was and ER nurse, and there was a fire station just down the road. 

The only reason I survived was thanks to a very loud and demanding dog, who refused to be shut out of my bedroom. 

Finally the school acted, towards the end of the year, when my mother threatened to call the police.  She knew about the pushing and shoving, and the name calling.  She wouldn't hear about the other abuse - that continued until Junior High - until I was in high school, and then I told her even more in college. 

At 23, I have grown so used to sexual harassment that it took activist videos and testimony from other women to make me see what was happening.  I have developed health concerns due to my eating disorder, that went untreated for years, and still have trouble remembering how I escaped from violent situations.  I still have people ask me why I didn't fight back, question the reality of what I tell them, or ever suggest that I "liked" what happened to me.

But I am a survivor.  And a writer.  I tell my story in almost every piece of writing I do, though none of it makes sense, and there is so much that is left unsaid. 

I can think of five people who stood up for me during the years I needed the most help.  A teacher that jumped in a reported the violence.  Two students who warned me about tacks hidden around my desk and the handles of my backpack, and warned me when they saw anyone go through my backpack. 

This all makes no sense.  But the hardest thing - the worst thing - was seeing how what happened to me affected my parents, my older sisters, and my relationships with other people.  But if it weren't for them, and one very persistent toy poodle, I wouldn't be here. 

Ive never been one to have many friends, ive also never been one to keep my thoughts of someone to myself. If I didnt like someone as a young child, I wasnt afraid to tell them. I guess that made a target. Ever since I can remember I have always been bullied. Ive never been the skinniest. Ive never been the prettiest. But im sure ive been more real about the things I do than others. Ive been through years of bullying. Ive dealt with eating disorders, cutting, and even attempts of suicide. The movie following these 5 children has given me the courage to stand up. I cant take it for me, and other kids in the future. People need to realize that staying silent wont change a thing. Its not okay to stand by and watch and its not okay to be a victim and never speak up. Im here to help.

I Was bullied all throughout my school years... and I still am today. The only thing that has kept me here is my family and all my wonderful friends... If iI didn't have what I have I wouldn't be typing you this, i would probably be in a mental hospital because i cut myself or something like that... just know that you are not alone and there are people there for you... I am one of them.

This is the story of my son Jacob who in his first three years of school was bullied and tormented to the point where he wanted to hurt himself  My jacob is a ten year old with autism spectrum disorder with adhd and add with severe anxiety and depression So to these bullies he was an easy target my son would come home and cry these kids would take his stuff would kick him they would call him names becuase of the way he talkes you see my jacob also has a speech problem and no matter how many times i went to the school or how many meetings we had nothing got done so we ended up having to move and change his school and anyone who has a child with autism knows this was not a easy move Jacob does not do well with any type of change what these kids did to my son is heart breaking and the fact the school did nothing about it is even more heart breaking my son struggles every day just trying to be like every one else just to fit in so kids will like him when in fact he is perfect an amazing just the way he is

All throughout my life, I've been a "heavier" girl. Once middle school started,   that's also when the severe bullying started. I suddenly lost all my "friends," I was teased every day about my weight, my acne, my intelligence, etc.  School was an absolute nightmare, and every day I had to go, it would get worse; from people saying "It's called weightwatchers, fatass," to people telling me to put the fork down, and even to the measures of having food thrown at me in the cafeteria on a daily basis.  No one, at any age, anywhere, should feel the need to take his/her own life because of what other people say about them, but there comes a point where enough is enough.  For years, I struggled with eating disorders, self harming, and suicide attempts.  I'm finally starting to accept that no matter what you do, you will never please anyone.

 My whole life I have been different. I didn't realize my uniqueness until others pointed it out first. Their reactions weren't always positive. I was made fun of profusely because of my weight in grade school. I thought it was normal- I never really took it to heart. Middle school was different. I would go home and cry and wish I wouldn't wake up. By 8th grade I had tried to kill myself twice. 

 High school was even worse. I entered freshman year as an insecure, self-conscious, scared girl. Going to an all-girls' private high school was a nice change. I felt safe and secure there. Bullies still found a way into my life...through the internet. My body and face were invitations for boys and girls to dissect every part of me that made me feel small. I was humiliated. The bullying and harassment followed me outside of my house. I was at a park one night and a few boys decided to throw eggs at me. It was the most terrifying moment in my life. To top it all off, one boy threw a rock at my neck and I couldn't move my neck for a few hours. 

"Slut." "Whore." "Fat." "Worthless." "Freak." 

These words cut through me like glass. I never thought I could be abused verbally-but I was. I sunk into a severe depression. The death threats began, and I was done. I tried to hang myself. I was hospitalized twice in a year for cutting. I felt I had no outlet.

Finally, a light ignited inside of me. I took a look around, and realized: this isn't the rest of my life-this is high school. I can get through this. No, it's not fair that I have to put up with this-no child should have to. But this experience is going to make me strong. I am proud to say that after 3 years of struggling and suffering, I am so much better. The bullying is kept to a minimum, and I have found my voice. I can stand up for myself. I want to be able to stand up for those who can't. Bullying is a sensitive topic to me and I want to share with the world my story and inspire others to stay strong. Better days start with us.

My experience with bullying was a heartwrenching one.  Growing up my little brother was bullied and as a sister I stood up one day and pushed back against a couple of guys that continued to hit, push, and call him hateful names.  It helped a little but I was unprepared for how I would feel when it became my son.  I had to sit back and watch as no one did anything to help him.  He was bullied from the time he was in 2nd grade until he was in 8th grade.  He was called names, pushed down, hit , stabbed with a pencil, and even pulled down a flight of bleachers and no one did anything.  The principle in his school basically said he needed to stand up for himself and they would stop.....they didn't and he learned to cope by writting and talking to me.  I encouraged him in the best I knew how by listening and loving him unconditionally.  I wont say that I didn't want to go to school and confront these kids, but it was looked on by the staff and principle as just a rite of passage for a boy.  I want to take an active stand today and help those that are being bullied and even those that are bullying to understand what their actions can produce.  So many children have taken their lives and we stand by and do nothing.......NO MORE!

"Girls are mean" This is something that I heard for many years throughout school from my teachers, friends, and family. I remember coming home and crying to my parents at what they would say to me. The worst attack I got from the girls was one night all the "cool" kids were at a party and I was at home with my parents and a friend was sleeping over. I got a strange call and decided to answer it. The kids at the party had been drinking and thought it would be a good idea to call and harass me. They said awful things like "We know where you live and will kill you".  I told me parents and they decided to call the cops. The cops said that there was nothing they could really do because the number was blocked and they wouldn't have been able to track it. Looking back now I see that this along with the many other situations only made me stronger because of my family being there for me.

This is one of my many encounters with bullying, however this experience was about my best friend Kerra she's really good at tennis and really skinny, but not anorexic. We were playing tennis in gym and our teacher has little competitions and whoever wins gets candy. It's not that big of a deal, bout as always this other girl Caila had to make it a big deal. When our teacher announced that Kerra had won the competition Kerra got her candy. After gym class Kerra was eating her ring pop and Caila walks by and mutters to Kerra "Eat that, you're gonna need it to get some fat on your little anorexic ass." Kerra cried for weeks on end. I heard about her getting bullied by Caila, went directly to our Principal and Caila got suspended. She no longer goes to our school, but I was bullied by her in ways that I should not have glad to endure and it shouldn't have had to take six years before she was asked to leave. Caila bullied other people other than me and Kerra and everyone wanted her to leave. She needed to be stopped and she finally was. I was so relieved. 😌