Bullying is stupid. I would like to think that everybody knows that, but unfortunately bullying is a huge problem in today’s world. Especially among the youth of today. Statistics show that nearly thirty percent of students between the ages of twelve and eighteen report that they have been bullied throughout the school year. Bullying has truly become an epidemic. It’s been the root of many problems including the school dropout rate, suicide, and shootings. But no one really cares about the statistics. They’re just statistics right? Well I fit into that statistic.

I’ve recently seen many posts on different social media platforms about the don’t bully challenge. The purpose of this challenge is to post a picture of who you were and what you looked like then and a picture of yourself now to show that you’ve changed and become some kind of better person. I recently accepted this challenge in my own way.

The way this challenge has come across to me is that in order to not be bullied you have to be a beautiful person on the outside. People are taking pictures of what they used to look like and posting them next to pictures of what they look like now. They’re taking pictures of high school them with ratty hair and braces and posting them next to the pictures of them with flawless skin, silky hair, and perfect teeth. The message that I get from these posts is “you can’t bully me anymore. I look good now”. That is not what this challenge should be about.

Looking at me now, you wouldn’t think that I would have ever really been bullied. But I was. When I was in high school I dyed my hair black and wore heavy, dark eye makeup. I wore baggy clothing and my wardrobe consisted of primarily black items. I was labeled as “emo” or “goth”. I got told almost daily that I should just go home and cut myself some more, something that I never once did. I was picked on constantly about my height and the way I dressed. I got asked multiple times if I was hiding a pregnant belly because I wore such baggy sweaters. I got shoved in the hallways and at one point I was pushed down an entire set of bleachers. Only one person stopped to ask me if I was ok. It might not be something that he remembers doing, but it stuck out to me considering that no one really ever stood up for me or asked me if I was ok and I definitely didn’t know how to stand up for myself.

I have changed from that person. I stopped dying my hair, I toned down the makeup, and my clothes have become less baggy and black. I definitely look different. Hell, I definitely look better. But me looking more attractive isn’t a reason to not bully me. I’ve changed in other ways too. I’ve learned how to stand up for myself. I learned how to treat people kindly, even if they treat me like crap first. I’ve matured as a person and discovered who I am.

I responded to the challenge, but not with the typical “I was ugly and now I’m not” pictures. I responded with a picture of me being eaten by a shark blanket and a picture of me with no makeup on and a bad hair day hat. I responded with these pictures because they show everybody that I’m happy now. They don’t show others that I’ve become attractive. They show others that I overcame bullying and increased my level of happiness. My post shows people that I went through a few awkward phases, but that these phases were just me attempting to find my place in the world. And I’ve finally found it.

So to all of those that used to bully me, you can suck it. Regardless of your attempts to hurt me, injure my pride, and harm my self-esteem, I came out on top. I am here and, in case you were wondering, I’m doing great. I’m surrounded by friends, family, and many wonderful sisters and I am getting my degree unlike most of you that used to shove me down the stairs.

We shouldn’t not bully people because of how attractive they are. We should just not bully people. It’s a stupid thing to do considering a lot of those that are bullied end up rising above anyway. And those that don’t rise above? Well, you should feel like crap for causing someone to even remotely feel so bad about themselves that they even consider self-harm as an option. Bullying doesn’t make you look cool and it isn’t going to help you feel any less insecure about whatever is causing you to lash out at someone. If something is going on that you need to talk about, there are options available. The same goes for those that are being bullied. It’s ok to tell someone what’s going on. It’s ok to talk about how you’re feeling. It doesn’t make you a weaker person. In fact, it makes you stronger because you’re standing up for yourself. So go through your awkward high school phase with pride. These awkward stages are all just the beginning of discovering your true self.