Glenn’s Story:

I was bullied from early childhood and bullying has had a huge impact on my life. Unfortunately, bullying can start at home and in school and it may take a while for someone to recognize what it really is. This can cause damage to your self-esteem and bring about thoughts of self-harm and suicide. I remember being bullied by my father who had no patience with me and who caused me a great deal of self-doubt. One episode that stands out is when I was learning how to drive and I had gone to a trial ride with him. Being a beginner I was nervous and my driving wasn’t as smooth as I wished. My father quickly lost his patience with me and left me in the car without saying a word and never spoke about me learning how to drive ever again. I believe that this was a more subtle form of bullying that nevertheless caused a great deal of damage. As bullying continued in school, I even attempted suicide twice.

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Luckily, I had good people in my life as well, who have been a source of strength for me. These include my mom and my sisters in law. Thanks to their support I was able to seek out help. I found help in state organizations that set me up with a therapist. The therapist diagnosed me with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and depression. Being in therapy and taking medications for my condition has helped me tremendously. I can now be in crowds and go about my life without getting panic attacks. Overall, I feel much better even though some effects of the long term bullying still exist.

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I strongly believe that bullying can have catastrophic consequences on someone’s life. I am a testament of this. Nobody should ever endure any type of bullying on or off line. If you find yourself a victim of bullying seek out help. Help exists out there in the form of people in your family or at school, and in organizations. With the right help you can start to heal and begin to lead a normal life.

If you want to share your experience with bullying or cyberbullying you can send us a DM on Twitter  at @1DFABNDA‬ or an email at Onedirectionnda@gmail.com. Let us know if you want your story published, which can be done in complete anonymity.