Anxiety...Cause and Effect of Bullying

I don’t even no where to begin! For me, bullying is the cause and effect of my anxiety. Or if you want to put it this way, bullying is the cause and effect of my “trust issues disorder.” Although, not all my anxiety stems from that, but it is a good source of it. When you are constantly bullied in school, I ask you, how can you not have anxiety? All things considered, it just didn’t come bubbling up until in my later years.

Altogether, I believe, bullying anxiety develops into social anxiety. It’s all an interwoven, complicated disorder. It used to be that I couldn’t go out in public because I’d have a panic attack. Now, I’m getting better by going to the store and spend more and more time being around other people (without having a panic attack). Hence, I’m not so worried about what they think of me and talking to someone.

“My mother always used to say: The older you get, the better you get, unless you’re a banana.” —Rose (Betty White), The Golden Girls

Root Cause of Social Anxiety

All in all, social anxiety can profoundly affect someone’s ability to socialize and communicate with other people. For those suffering from full-blown social anxiety disorder, which in any given year includes up to seven percent of the adult population, the symptoms of social anxiety can be overwhelming, debilitating, and beyond their ability to control.

Chiefly, the defining cause and effect of social anxiety from bullying include:

Intense fear of social interactions in a wide variety of contexts
Anticipatory anxiety that leads social anxiety sufferers to avoid opportunities for conversation or public speaking
Extreme symptoms of anxiety experienced during unwanted or stressful social interactions
Poor verbal communication skills, complicated by a person’s inability to think clearly while experiencing anxiety
Overly critical self-evaluations of performance after conversations or spoken presentations are finished
Lastly, low self-esteem and a lack of self-confidence, which are reinforced by constant self-criticism

When not interacting with close friends or family, people with severe social anxiety from the cause and effect of bullying have a deep-seated fear of being judged, rejected, embarrassed or humiliated during social interactions. At length, as irrational as those fears may be, they are difficult to escape.

“Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.” —-Dr. Seuss

Bullying Health Effects

At the same time, the effects of bullying have serious and lasting negative impacts on our mental health and overall wellbeing. Therefore, bullying can cause feelings of rejection, exclusion, isolation, low self-esteem, and some individuals can develop depression and anxiety as a result. In some cases it can even develop into Acute Stress Disorder or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Comparetively, research has shown that being a victim of bullying can lead to longer term impacts including interpersonal violence, substance use, sexual violence, poor social functioning, and poor performance. Even witnessing bullying can impact one’s wellbeing.

At any rate, being bullied at a young age can affect someone well past childhood and can cause lifelong psychological damage. Consequently, during these young years, children are identifying roles, developing personalities, and figuring out who they are. When a young person is bullied, it can lead to problems with trust in others, self-esteem, and anger. As I have said, it can be hard to develop relationships with others at an older age when you may not have had any at a younger age. When we’re repeatedly presented with blows about who we are or what we are doing, we create a poor self-image and expect that others see us in the same light.

Eventually, bullying has a cause and effect with anxiety on an individual with lingering feelings, turning into anger towards others or ourselves. When one goes through bullying over a long period of time, they may begin to blame themselves for being bullied. Coupled with, thinking thoughts such as “If I wasn’t so ugly, people would leave me alone,” or “If I tried harder, people wouldn’t make fun of me.” Therefore, the types of thoughts can change how we see and feel about ourselves and leave long-term impacts.

“Let what comes come. Let what goes go. Find out what remains.” —Ramana Maharshi

Long Term Effects of Anxiety

Even more, there are long-term effects of chronic anxiety. Studies show that long-term exposure to the stress hormones that flood the body during an anxiety attack poses serious health risks, including:

Increased risk of heart disease
Gastrointestinal disorders like irritable bowel syndrome
Frequent migraines
Significant weight gain or loss
Weakened immune system
Tensed muscles causing joint, skin, and muscle aches
Increased risk of inflammation and pain
Lastly, having a weakened immune system makes you vulnerable to viral infections and frequent illnesses, which may be why people who suffer from the effects of bullying anxiety are more likely to go to the doctor than those who do not have anxiety. Further, those with anxiety disorders are more likely to have co-occurring disorders such as depression and substance use disorder.

Be that as it may, the lasting, long-term effects of anxiety on the body are significant and can lead to a host of other health complications if anxiety is left untreated. Even more, chronic anxiety doesn’t just impact your emotional well-being, but it can also lead to physical ailments such as cardiovascular diseases, chronic respiratory disorders, and gastrointestinal problems, highlighting the utmost importance of seeking timely help and intervention.

“Awakening is not changing who you are, but discarding who you are not.” —Deepak Chopra

Bullied Hotline

Furthermore, you can always tell someone to dial 741741 when you think they might need help. Crisis Text Line is here to help with bullying. Text a Crisis Counselor at 741741.

To talk to someone now: Call or text 988

For Spanish speakers:
Call 988 and then press 2

For deaf/hard of hearing:
Use your preferred relay service or dial 711 then 988

For Veterans:
Dial 988 then press 1
Text 838255

“The walls we build around us to keep sadness out also keep out the joy.” —Jim Rohn

Bullying Help Websites

Chat With Lifeline

Suicide prevention Lifeline

Visit Ayuda en Español: Lifeline

“The walls we build around us to keep sadness out also keep out the joy.” —Jim Rohn

Cyberbullying Hotline

BULLYING & CYBERBULLYING HELPLINES
CHILDLINE (UK) 0800 1111
If you are under 18 years of age
Available 24/7
Counselling and advice for children who are in distress or suffering abuse

STOP BULLYING NOW HOTLINE (USA) 1-800-273-8255
Helpline set up by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Available 24/7

KIDS HELPLINE (AUS) 1-800 55 1800
Advice for children parents and schools
Available 24/7

NSPCC HELPLINE (UK) 0808 800 5000
If you are an adult concerned about the safety of a child
Available 24/7
Help and advice from the NSPCC’s trained counsellors

YOUNG MINDS (UK) 0808 802 5544
Advice for parents on bullying and mental health
Open Monday-Friday 9.30am-4pm

KIDS HELP PHONE (CANADA) 800-668-6868
Available 24/7
Bilingual
Advice for children and youths

“Tears are words that need to be written.” ―Paulo Coelho

Conclusion

Nonetheless, mental bullying is on the rise. Bullying and mental health problems go hand in hand. In any case, I’m still suffering from the effects of bullying. I think I always will. Regardless, it’s something that’s engraved into my brain and psyche. I wish I could go back and defend myself when my peers were bullying me. In any event, I’m better at defending myself now, but I still haven’t made peace with the past. To tell you the truth, I don’t know if I ever will.

In any event, the cause and effect of bullying is anxiety. Therefore, when a bully sees your weakness, they ponce on it over and over. Therefore, whittling you down to nothing until they’re at your core center. That’s the cause. The effect is…me. Notwithstanding, it effected me so much that I’m still dealing with it and probably will the rest of my life.

Presently, bullying has to stop because it’s screwing up individual’s lives, from the times it happens, until the day they die. I’m still so pissed about it, I can’t think of what to say for this post. Particularly, you may be wondering why this long? Because it happened over and over and nobody came to my defense…including me. Well, I’m going to go and try to calm down. Until next time…