With so many recent cases of suicide being talked about in the media, it leaves many wondering about the new term Bullycide. This new term, bullycide, is a hybrid of bullying and suicide to explain when someone takes their life as a result of being bullied.

There are many teens who face being bullied every day whether it be at school, around their neighborhood, in public places or online. Cyberbullying has taken the concept of physical bullying to a whole new level, which is why many researchers believe it is often responsible for cases of bullycide. With many teens taking their lives after being bullied by fellow peers either in school or on the Internet, it leaves parents, teachers and their friends wondering what can be done to prevent bullycide.

What is bullycide?

The correct definition to this question is bullycide is suicide caused from the results of bullying. Children and teens who are bullied live in a constant state of fear and confusion in their lives. Many feel the only way to escape the rumors, insults, verbal abuse and terror is to take their own life. Bullycide is clearly a serious issue. There are several different reasons that ultimately can lead to bullycide including:

Being constantly physically and emotionally bullied
Experiencing constant physical and emotional pain
Having to continually relive an embarrassing moment over and over that is regularly brought up to peers as a method of torment
Being the victim of bullying by an authority figure like a parent, teacher, coach or other adult
When the victim of bullying has no other friends to rely on for support or encouragement while being bullied regularly

Bullying prevention:

Because bullying is at the root of the problem when it comes to these ever-to-frequent cases of bullycide, the best way to take preventative measures is to work on stopping children and teens from being bullied. It is important to realize that the big, mean boy on the playground isn’t the only type of bully anymore. There are many types of bullies from boys, girls, teens of all ages to adults in authority positions. Cyberbullying also makes it easier for children and teens to bully one another. Bullying has also been found to be a growing trend among recent bullying statistics. Now the question comes down to how to prevent bullying among youth to prevent cases of bullycide.

One of the best ways to prevent bullying is to have your child journal every single instance of bullying. If the bullying is happening at school or is school-related, make sure to take this journal to a teacher, counselor or even the principal. If the matter is not resolved from there, take the situation to the police. Bullying and hate crimes are against the law. If teachers or administrative members at your school refuse to take action, file a complaint or charges against the school for negligence to cases of criminal bullying. It is their job to ensure the safety of your child while they are at school. Take the matter to the police and school board to ensure action. This may make the difference between ending the bullying and some child or teen’s life as the result of bullycide.

Do not allow your child to become a victim of bullying by encouraging open communication. If your child hides the instances of bullying from you, chances are you may not even notice that they have a problem until it is too late. Make sure your child knows they can come to you for help with anything. Another way to prevent bullycide and from bullying getting to far, make sure your child has a good group of friends. Often, bullies target children and teens who are loners or do not have many friends because they make for easy targets. Having friends can be a great protection for your teen or child against bullying. While cases of bullying and bullycide are growing, there are also more and more schools cracking down to ensure their students are not becoming bullies or becoming victims of bullies. However, parents still play a vital role in protecting their child against cases of bullying and bullycide.

If I wanted to, I could put link after link here about bullying.
Some people don't care and others are very concerned. There is NO reason for anyone to be bullied!!!

Stop Bullying.Gov
5 Reasons Teens Become Bullies
Click here to read my personal thoughts on bullying
Teens charged with cyberbullying after posting video of 'play fight'
Please Listen to Ellen's Message! Who doesn't love Ellen? She is right on!

Why Children Tease

Children tease for a number of different reasons:

• Attention. Teasing is a good way of receiving negative attention, and, unfortunately, for many children, negative attention is better than no attention.

• Imitation. Some children model or mimic what is happening to them at home by acting the same way to others at school or in the neighborhood. These teasers are children who may be teased by siblings or who experience aggressive or harsh parenting.

• Feelings of superiority or power. Many teasers feel superior when they put others down, or they may feel powerful when teasing upsets others.

• Peer acceptance. It is not uncommon to see children engage in teasing behavior because they may perceive it as being the "cool" thing to do. It may help them feel part of a group. The need to belong may be so strong that a child may tease others to be accepted by the "popular" children.

• Misunderstanding differences. A lack of understanding of "differences" may be the underlying factor in some teasing. Many children are not familiar with or do not understand cultural or ethnic differences. In some instances, a child with a physical or a learning disability may be the target of teasing because they are different. Some children criticize anyone who is different instead of
trying to learn or understand what makes others special.

• Media influence. One cannot discuss the reasons children tease without acknowledging the powerful influence of the media. Our children are frequently exposed to teasing, put-downs, sarcasm, and a lack of respect in many of the television programs geared toward children.

Watch this Video "Bullied to Death"

To see more videos click HERE

More on Child Bullying from The American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry

Researchers who have studied bullying have reached the following common conclusions:

Bullying takes place most frequently in school.

At school, bullying occurs most often where there is little or no adult supervision--on the playground, in the bathrooms, hallways and cafeteria, and in the classroom before lessons begin.

Most bullying is verbal rather than physical.

Bullying begins in elementary school, peaks in middle school, and falls off in high school. It does not, however, disappear altogether.

Boys bully both boys and girls. Girls tend to bully girls.

Although boys are more often the perpetrators and victims of bullying, girls tend to bully in more indirect ways, manipulating friendships, ostracizing classmates, and spreading malicious rumors.

Both bullies and onlookers tend to blame the victims for the treatment they receive.

Although most victims don't look very different from their classmates,
they are taunted most often because of their physical appearance.

Boys who are chronically victimized tend to be more passive and physically weaker than their tormentors.

In middle school, girls who mature early are commonly victims of harassment. --DEBRA VIADERO

A lot of information on bullying and how you can help: Stomp out Bullying

Pacers National Bullying Prevention Center - GREAT WEBSITE!!

What did I do to deserve this? (Bullied teen dies after jumping in front of bus clutching suicide note)

Email: julieflynn58@yahoo.com