Bullying Is No Laughing Matter

As a parent of a child who is dealing with being bullied perhaps I am just a little to sensitive.  Today while I was waiting for my children in front of their school, several kids came out of school laughing and joking around, they looked like they were having a great time.  Then I heard one of the kids say (while laughing) "I'm being bullied".  This child's friends responded by grabbing this child and laughing, saying that if said child didn't give them their lunch money then they were going to beat said child up.  There were several comments just like this and lots of laughing going on. My heart broke when I saw them playing this way.  

Unfortunately bullying has become a normal sight at schools today. Children who are bullied go through so many things, some even end up taking their own lives. As a result of being bullied I know that my child has developed a sense of loneliness and feeling of just not being good enough, his stress induced tic has come back, and his grades have dropped. These are all things that we as a family have to deal with everyday, which is not an easy task.

I know that the children on the school yard were only trying to have fun, but I just hope that they never have to deal with being bullied for real.  I would encourage every parent to talk with their child about being bullied and what it means.  I would also stress to parents to talk with their children about what to do it they know someone is being bullied.  Bullying can be stopped if the adults and leaders know that it is going on.