CYBERBULLYING

1. Spreading lies about or posting embarrassing photos or videos of someone on social media.
2. Sending hurtful, abusive or threatening messages, images or videos via messaging platforms.
3. Impersonating someone and sending mean messages to others on their behalf or through fake accounts.

• Face-to-face bullying and cyberbullying can often happen alongside each other. But cyberbullying leaves a digital footprint a record that can prove useful and provide evidence to help the abuse.

3. Effects of cyberbullying

• When bullying happens online it can feel as if you are being attacked everywhere, even inside your own home.
• It can seem like there's no escape. The effects can last a long time and affect a person in many ways:

1. Mentally: Feeling upset, embarrassed, stupid, even afraid or angry
2. Emotionally: feeling ashamed or losing interest in the things you love
3. Physically: tired (loss of sleep) or experiencing symptoms like stomach aches and headaches

• The feeling of being laughed at or harassed by others can prevent people from speaking up or trying to deal with the problem.
• In extreme cases, cyberbullying can even lead to people taking their own lives.
• Cyberbullying can affect us in many ways. But these can be overcome and people can regain their confidence and health.

4. Affect on mental health

• When you experience cyberbullying you might start to feel ashamed, nervous, anxious and insecure about what people say or think about you.
• This can lead to withdrawing from friends and family, negative thoughts and self-talk, feeling guilty about things you did or did not do or feeling that you are being judged negatively.
• Feeling lonely, overwhelmed, frequent headaches, nausea or stomachaches are also common.
• You can lose your motivation to do the things that you usually enjoy doing and feel isolated from the people you love and trust.
• This can perpetuate negative feelings and thoughts which can adversely affect mental health and well-being.
• Skipping school is another common effect of cyberbullying and can affect the mental health of young people who turn to substances like alcohol and drugs or violent behaviour to deal with their psychological and physical pain.
• Taking to a friend, family member or school counsellor you trust can be a first step to getting help.
• The effects of cyberbullying on mental health can vary depending on the medium through which it happens.
• For example, bullying via text messaging or through pictures or videos on social media platforms has proven to be very harmful to adolescents.

For Prelims & Mains

Source: UNICEF.org