Unless you have been living under a huge rock, you must have heard about all the children and young people who have died from self-inflicted injuries lately. You must have heard that suicide is the second leading cause of death for our youth ages 10-34yr. Well, did you know that many of these suicides were as a result of bullying? Yes, a great majority of children who die by suicide are as a result of bullying... nearly 60%
This is appalling considering the fact that bullying is so pervasive now. Many people even think bullying is a necessary part of growing up, and think kids actually "deserve" to be bullied to make them somehow stronger. Well, I for one disagree, and I hope that if you are in that school of thought, you will have a change of heart after listening to this episode.
Do you know who is at risk of being bullied? Do you know the different forms bullying can take, or what makes someone become a bully? Do you know that your child, yes, your precious "little angel" could be the bully? Are you aware that the LGBTQ family are at extremely high risk of not only bullying, but also suicide AND homicide? Do you know what role you can play in helping curb all of this?
We shall touch on a lot of aspects of bullying especially as it relates to suicide, our children, the schools, our homes and ourselves. We shall discuss characteristics of victims, bullies and even bystanders. We shall delve into the reasons why kids don't tell, and possible consequences of being each of these persons.
We shall also discuss what needs to be done, by parents, the schools, the government, our kids, their friends and, you, my listener in order to combat bullying.
Log on to www.bullying.gov and many other anti-bullying sites out there for more information, and don't forget to subscribe and share this podcast, thank you.
Dr. L
