October is bully prevention month

September 16, 2012
My time on the Philip Till show
October 9, 2012
September 16, 2012
My time on the Philip Till show
October 9, 2012

Hi everyone, hope you are all doing well.  I wanted to drop a quick line to draw your attention to an important topic: office bullying and bullying in general.  A lot has been said about this in school age children and teens and the many negative effects it can have: depression, anxiety, suicide among others.

What may not be as obvious is that this behavior can, and often does, continue into adult years.  Bullying behaviour is very common in adults as well, both at home and work.  This can significantly affect someone’s quality of life and cause similar problems to those seen in younger people, up to and including suicide.  The stress of bullying can contribute to unhealthy behaviours, such as a lack of sleep and exercise, that can contribute to heart disease and other medical problems.

October is Bully Prevention Month so this is a great time to draw attention to this terrible behaviour.  It is important if you are being bullied, to get help, and if you see someone being bullied, speak up or do something so that this can be stopped!

I have two great links for you.  One is to my friend Maureen McGrath at www.backtothebedroom.ca.  Maureen is a public health nurse with a focus on sexual health.  She also does a lot of work on bullying prevention.  Look at her blog on her website at www.backtothebedroom.ca/blog for more details.  Maureen has spoken about it twice on the radio recently, on her own show and on the Philip Till morning show on CKNW.  Links to these interviews are on her blog.

The second is to the BC Lions.  I have been privileged to consult for this team in my professional life, and I am a long time fan, since I was four years old!  They have a great initiative on encouraging people to stand up and help other people they see being bullied.  It is called “Be More Than A Bystander.”  Read about it at http://www.bclions.com/page/bemorethanabystander.

I hope this article and these references show you what a serious problem this can be.  Have you ever dealt with a bully or been bullied yourself?  I am interested in your experience!  Please leave a comment!

Until next time,

Dr. John Vyselaar

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Share via
Send this to a friend