This week is Anti-bullying Week so it was very timely that an email popped up from Touretteshero supporter Courtney, proposing a guest blog about bullying. I’m going to hand over to Courtney now so she can share her thoughts and ideas on the subject.

Photo: Joanne Reeve

Bullying – this is something we all know about. Some people experience it only now and then. But others live in fear of being picked on or mocked all the time.

My name is Courtney Reeve. I’m 17 years old and have a disability called cerebral palsy. I care about bullying because I’ve experienced the impact it can have first hand. On one upsetting occasion a woman who was drunk called me a really offensive word and it got so bad that we had to call the police.

Why do People bully?

I think bullying can happen for a few reasons including:

• To look cool
• Because bullies have been bullied themselves in the past
• Peer pressure and wanting to feel popular
• Fear of things that are different

What I Would Say to Bullies

• What’s cool about bullying people?
• If you know how much pain your hurtful words and actions can cause why pass that on to someone else?
• Do you want to be known for negative or positive things?
• Hey, guess what, everyone’s different. Being different is normal.

What Can We Do About Bullying?

I think one word would help solve the problem of bullying – love. That’s right, I said love. If we all just loved people for who they are things would be much better. You can try this out at school, clubs and even at your work place.

This might sometimes feel quite hard but if you try you might be surprised by the love and acceptance you get back as well.

If there’s a time in the future when something you’re doing could be hurting another person, think about how you would feel and remember that everybody is different and wants to be appreciated for the person they are.

Until next time, show love.

Back to you Touretteshero…

Big thanks to Courtney for her post and the work she put into it. You can find out more about her here. If bullying is something that’s affecting you please reach out for advice and support.

There are some great online resources. If you’re a child or young person and need help, get in touch with Childline, and if you’d like to learn more about what bullying is, have a look at this site. If you’re an adult affected by bullying there’s more information here.

Have a great weekend and, in Courtney’s wise words, love the people around you for who they are.