If your child is the victim of bullying, he will feel scared, lonely and without hope. If you do suspect he may be being bullied, you might find it hard to get him to tell you about it. It may be that he will feel ashamed and feel that it’s his own fault he is being bullied. He may think that he’s ‘tattling’ by telling a parent, or the bully may have threatened him with even worse punishments if he tells anyone.
If your child is being bullied, he might:
- Feel isolated and excluded from family and friends
- Try to avoid school by feigning illness, or even run away from school
- Want to change his route to school, or ask you to take him to school
- Become upset at the mention of going to school
- Let school work suffer because of how stressed and upset he is
- Not want to talk to you about his day at school
- Become angry and lash out if you ask him what’s going on in his life
- Have unexplained injuries, cuts or bruises
- Feel too upset or anxious to eat
- Lose self-confidence
- Have nightmares
- Start wetting the bed
