A Toronto Public Health Survey of 6,053 Grade 7-12 students across Toronto’s four public boards showed that 20% or 1 in 5 students reported having being bullied in the 2014 school year. This number is of public health concern, as bullying can lead to longterm negative emotional and physical consequences.

Below is a list of the many types of Bullying that Youth may experience (1):

Cyberbullying
- use email, instant messaging, internet chat rooms, and electronic gadgets like camera cell phones
- forward and spread hurtful images and/or messages
- harass victims at all hours, in wide circles, at warp speed
- these bullies may feel less remorse for their actions as they cannot see their victims response
Emotional Bullying
- can involve isolating or excluding a child from activities or spreading rumors
- can be subtle ie. shunning the victim in the lunchroom or on school outings
- especially common among girls
Physical Bullying
- involves things like kicking, hitting, biting, pinching, hair pulling or threats of physical harm
Racist Bullying
- preys on children through racial slurs, offensive gestures, or making jokes about a child’s cultural traditions
Sexual Bullying
- involves unwanted physical contact or sexually abusive or inappropriate comments.
Verbal Bullying
- usually involves name-calling, incessant mocking, and laughing at a child's expense.
Allergy Bullying
- teasing a child about their allergies, throwing food at a child or forcing them to touch/eat allergenic food

Why Do Youth Bully?

Many reasons
Frequently target people who are different, then they seek to exploit those differences, choose victims who they think are unlikely to retaliate.
May be a way of dealing with a difficult situation at home, such as a divorce
May have been bullied or have been victims of abuse themselves
May think their behavior is normal because they come from families in which everyone regularly gets angry, shouts, and/or calls names
Bullies often have low self-esteem and want to feel in control, if only momentarily
Cyberbullies often have high internet use (>3hrs per day) in an unmonitored environment (2)

Signs That Your Child May be Being Bullied:

Inventing mysterious illnesses to avoid school (stomachaches, headaches, etc.)
Missing belongings or money
Sleeping problems
Bedwetting
Irritability
Poor concentration
Unexpected changes in routine
Problems with schoolwork

How to Help if Your Child Is Being Bullied:

Be a good listener
Show your love and support
Limit internet use to <2 hrs per day
Keep computers in open areas and encourage youth not to reveal passwords, secrets or open messages from people they don't know while online
Remind youth not to believe everything they read and encourage spending family time together away from the online world (nightly dinners)

To help ward off bullies, give your child these tips:

“Stay calm and try to respond to the person bullying you without anger”
“Look the person in the eye and tell them you don’t like what they are doing”
“ As soon as you can, find an adult you trust and tell the adult what happened”
“Stay close to friends you can count on to stick up for you”
“Stay away from places where you know bullying happens”
“If the bullying continues, walk away, join other teenagers or ask someone for help”
“Talk to a guidance counselor, teacher, or friend for support”
Develop positive friendships by joining social organizations, clubs, or sports programs
In persistent cases of bullying, consider going to school with your child and talking to your child's teacher, school counselor, or principal. In certain extreme cases it may include involving the authorities
Bill C-13 (Federal Cyberbullying Act) has been created and is pending government approval. It criminalizes the nonconsensual distribution of intimate images, allowing harassment charges to be filed when messages are sent electronically.

Additional Resources for Parents:

Resources for Parents and Professionals: www.kidsmentalhealth.ca
Dealing with Bullies: www.kidshealth.org
Fact sheet for Teenagers: www.kidshealth.org
Don’t suffer in silence: www.dfes.gov.uk
Bullying.org Canada: www.bullying.org
Cyberbullying: www.cyberbullying.ca
Mayo Clinic, Help your child handle a school bully: www.mayoclinic.com/health/bulllying
The Trevor project: http://www.thetrevorproject.org
It Gets Better Project: http://www.itgetsbetter.org
Address Allergy Bullying: http://www.whyriskit.ca/pages/en/live/bullying.php
In Crisis: www.kidshelpphone.ca

For patients, if you have more questions, feel free to talk to your Magenta Health family doctor. Dr. Aarti Kapoor is currently accepting new patients. Click here to register as a new patient.

(1) Canadian Children’s Rights Council (2013). Information about Bullying in Canada. Retrieved from: www.canadiancrc.com/Bullying_Canada_Resources_Provincial_Programs.aspx

(2) Peebles, E. (2014) Cyberbullying: Hiding Behind the Screen: Paediatric Child Health, 19(10): 527-528.

*reproduced from “Adolescent Sexual and Mental Health Toolkit for Clinical Trainees” by Dr. Aarti Kapoor