What To Do When You Suspect That Your Child Is Being Bullied |
Posted: August 2, 2019 |
No parent or caregiver wants to find out that their child is being bullied. One in 4 students in Australia will experience bullying by the end of high school. As Internet adoption use increases into our daily lives, cyberbullying is a new frontier that you as a caregiver will need to embrace. Understandably, it can be difficult to know what to do when your child falls victim to bullying. To provide you with some guidance, we’ve curated a few recommendations to help you through this difficult period. 1. Reassure Your Child That He/She Is Loved And SupportedWhen a child is experiencing a difficult time with their peers, it can be hard for them to feel positive about themselves. Making sure that your child feels loved and supported at home is very important because feeling safe is one of our primary needs as human beings. Positive reinforcement is an effective strategy to demonstrate that he/she is loved and supported. By highlighting something that they are good at, they can consequently feel better about themselves. For example, you may think that your child is a good listener or that they exhibit great sharing skills. Therefore, you can positively reinforce this to them on a regular basis so that they may feel safe when at home. This, in turn, may encourage them to open up about their bullying and allow you a way to have a dialogue with them. Similarly, make it clear that you will help and give your child your full attention. 2. Confrontation Is Not The AnswerFighting fire with fire is rarely the answer when it comes to dealing with bullies. Verbal or physical retaliation should be avoided. Instead, you can show them how they can stand up for themselves without resorting to physical violence. ‘Name The Game’ is a strategy that involves calling out a bully on their bad behaviour and letting them know that you do not like it. Sometimes this can be enough to stop them from continuing because the bully may not have been aware of how you were feeling or that what they were doing was wrong. Giving your child some strategies to deal with the bullies will help them to cope with their problems on their own first while feeling loved and supported by you for helping them. When your child confides in you that they are being bullied, let him/her know that it is normal to feel upset and agree that there is a problem. 3. Let Them SpeakAs an adult, it is easy to default to teaching mode. But when a child is experiencing bullying, they may just want an outlet to express feelings that they may not fully comprehend. As a caregiver, it is important that you stay calm as this will model to your child how to solve problems and praise him/her for opening up. Children may hide the fact that they are being bullied and if you suspect that bullying may be the case, it may be appropriate to bring in professional help. Child psychologists specialise in helping children who have serious issues like Autism or ADHD, but they also help children who are suffering from depression, anxiety and stress-related issues. Taking your child to a psychologist, like the professionals at New Vision Psychology can be very helpful, because it may encourage them to talk about their issues. Kids Helpline is a 24-hour service that provides at-risk children with evidence-based counselling from qualified experienced counsellors. If your child is resistant to seeking a therapist or child psychologist, let them know that they can always reach out to Kids Helpline. 4. Reassure Them That It Is Not Their FaultIn almost all cases of bullying, the child being bullied is not to blame for what is happening. It is never your child’s fault if they are being bullied. Therefore, you need to make it very clear to your child that this is the case from the moment that they tell you something is wrong. Some children may attract bullies because they are different from the rest of the pack in some way, but this does not mean that they should be bullied because of these differences. In life, not everyone is going to get along at all times, and even as an adult, you may come across a difficult person from time to time. Thus, helping your child to figure out ways to deal with difficult people will help them in the long run. Being different can also be a very good thing because it allows you to stand out from the crowd, so reinforcing these ideas with your child will help them get through the bad times.
|
||||||||||||||
|