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Adult Survivors Wall of Honor

November 18, 2011 By Peer Abuse Leave a Comment

Adult Survivors of Bullying/Peer Abuse are a very special lot. We lived abuse as children and survived it. As a result, we deserve this honor. Are you an adult who survived childhood Bullying/Peer Abuse? If so, this is the place for you.

Requirements

  • You must have experienced abuse by your peers between the ages of 2-17 years of age.
  • On the wall, only first names will be listed. No last names, stories or anything else. This ensures privacy.
  • This wall is for survivors only. There will be no bullycides, current abuse in school, work or anywhere else done by peers. If a survivor is in the workplace they are allowed but they must have experienced this during childhood. My heart goes out to these others. :(
  • Survivors of child, domestic, sexual, elder, animal or any other form of abuse will not be added. Sorry :(
  • Sibling Abuse survivors are allowed as this was done by peers in the home.
  • School shooters/murderers who are now adults and acted as a result of the abuse will be added. Shooters who committed bullycide will not. If you know of any, please let me know and will add them.

Check out the page:  http://peerabuse.net/adult-survivors-wall-of-honor-3/

If this is you, please email me at adultsurvivorofpeerabuse@gmail.com.

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Adult Survivors: This may interest you

September 7, 2011 By Peer Abuse 3 Comments

   Hello, I have been in touch with Firecracker Films and they are seeking stories on the B word. The age limit is up to 24 so those adult survivors who are between 18-24 are eligible to participate. See contact information below. Have a good day :)

Have you been the victim of bullying or are you currently being bullied? Do you have an inspirational story that’s seen you overcome your abuse? Would you like the chance to share your experiences?

 MTV and Firecracker Films are making a powerful and groundbreaking film that explores the universal stories of young people all over the world who have been affected by bullying, and gives a voice to those who want to make a stand.

 So, if you’ve been bullied, are being bullied at the moment or have a story that will give others hope then please get in touch, as our experienced team would love to hear from you. There is absolutely no obligation to take part – we’d just like to tell you more about the project and see if it’s something you’d like to be involved in. And don’t worry it won’t involve lots of intrusive filming either. All correspondence will be dealt with in total confidence.

We believe this project is important and unique in giving a voice to those who have fallen victim to bullying – thanks and we hope to hear from you soon.

 You can contact us at Emma.Findlay@firecrackerfilms.com or Yourstory@firecrackerfilms.com  or alternatively by phone on +44 (0)207 349 3492.  

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The class reunion

September 1, 2011 By Peer Abuse 3 Comments

 

Well, another week and yes, I admit I have been slack in blogging. It’s my bad and I admit it. Summer has a way of taking up extra energy and the temperatures here in the deep south have been scorching. Plus, caring for my mother takes a lot of energy. It is like I am the adult and she is the child. Anyway….on to the purpose of this blog.

As a survivor, I will admit that I have not attended my high schools 10th or 20th reunions. Why? Well duh….revisiting the past is not my personal idea of fun. True, I have had an abuser/bully apologize to me via email a few years ago, one find me on My Space and another send a friend request on Facebook. I accepted the apology from the email, offered condolences to the one on My Space as her mother passed away and blocked the one on Facebook. I had heard that the one from Facebook had not changed a bit since the terror she brought me, but gotten worse. However, it did seem that the one from email had matured and was concerned for her own children and their safety. At the same time, this has not led me to go look up everyone online and get all excited about the reunions. As a matter of fact, I had to call someone from the reunion committee and ask them that they cease with the emails about this festive affair back in the summer of 06. I will admit that even though I have come a long way in healing, some of these individuals still haunt me in my dreams. Despite my personal choice not to go take a night and relive the past, it does not mean that other survivors will do the same. I get emails all the time from survivors and some share my attitude while others have no problem going back. Some have had these abusers apologize to them online or in person. There is one case where the abuser and the abused became friends as adults through Facebook. At the same time, I have heard horror stories where the person was traumatized once again by their abuser and they were hurt once again. So, it is a mixed bag so to speak.

I picked up an article this week which gave great advice on dealing with this dilemma that survivors face every 10 years or so. I believe contacting the reunion committee and finding out who will be there is a great start. In my case, they found me first, but it may not be the same for everyone. I suggest finding someone on the committee that did not add to any abuse and talking to them and if you feel like it, share with them your thoughts. I had no trouble doing that and the feedback was positive and the committee member had no idea what pain I was in from this. Also, it is true that the abuser has probably forgotten their dirty deeds from back in the day so they may approach the abused with ignorance. What I really appreciated about the article was the fact that they did not make it sound like all was well in childhood bully land. You see, many believe that this behavior is outgrown and every abuser will apologize and live happily ever after. However, not all grow up, but some grow worse. Adult bullies/abusers are a lot more sophisticated in their abuse and tend to turn to relational aggressive tactics in handling the abused. Sure, they are “nice” and may “apologize” but one must never be too careful. As an adult, the abused and abuser do not “know” each other so initial conversation will come off as polite. Adults do not run around shouting “Becky has cooties” like children do, but are cordial for the most part. I also saw a great video on the psychopath and the different types. Some of these psychopaths started life as childhood bullies/abusers. It is a video I believe any survivor or anyone in society needs to watch. It is not the pictures used in the video that are important (I disagree with some of them that are used) but it is the content. Listen to what is being said and described.

So, should a survivor hit up the reunion? My advice is if they go to proceed with caution and the same with Facebook or other social network connections. I will always stay on the side of caution when it comes to this. I am not about to put anyone at risk. At the same time, this is a personal decision and one that not everyone may need to make in moving forward. Some will need this closure while others can get closure in other ways. The important thing is healing and moving forward. I only want the best for every survivor out there as we deserve it!

Resources: WordPress is not letting me add these links into this post and is being a pain so will leave them here:

 http://www.sacbee.com/2011/08/29/3869005/how-to-survive-the-bully-at-your.html

 http://beforeitsnews.com/story/987/483/Psychopaths:_The_Predators_Around_Us.html

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Brian Kearney guest Q&A with Adult Survivor James McLaughlin

August 15, 2011 By Peer Abuse 2 Comments

James McLaughlin was bullied throughout Middle and High School, causing him severe anxiety and resulting in low self-esteem and missing hundreds of days of school.

Now, 19 years old and in college majoring in Journalism, James shares his story of courage and forgiveness through his beautiful pieces of writing. He strives to share his story and urges those who are bullied or feel “different” to be themselves, and to remember, it gets better.

James McLaughlin can be followed on Twitter @jimmymac1191. Click here to see his inspiring “It Gets Better” video. Be sure to check out his upcoming features in Out in New Jersey and Smythe Magazine.

Q: What has being a victim of bullying taught you?

A: Well, I do not look at myself as a victim of bullying; I believe that I have been a subject of bullying. With that said, being subjected to much bullying it has not just taught me so many things, but in a way enriched my life. Bullying has taught me to look for where the true problems lay in situations. The true problem was not with me, there is nothing wrong with me. The problem was with those who were offensive to me.  I realized this when I came to terms with the issues with myself, for a long time I was my biggest bully. Once I cleared the air with myself, I realized there is no shame in dealing with other’s harassment. It was a problem they had with themselves, my presence in their lives was simply bringing those issues that they had to the surface. The problem lied with them, I was the normal one, I was the happy one being myself.

Q: What advice would you give those who are being bullied

A: Advice I must give to those who are being bullied would be to not look for acceptance from others. Do not look for acceptance from any clique or any group of friends. The key to stopping bullying from affecting you is to find acceptance with one person… yourself. Once you accept yourself for who you are, the opinions of others become outrageously unimportant. It’s natural to seek the acceptance of your peers, we all want friends, and we all want to be well liked. Yet, when we don’t like ourselves, others will not like us. When I began liking who I was, others began liking me. I didn’t seek out acceptance from others, people began seeking my acceptance and it created a new group of friends, all of whom are each great, accepting individuals.

  Q: Did you do anything that helped you cope with being bullied?

A:  I believe the one thing that helped cope with others’ words would be dreaming. I’d dream of my future and what it would be like. I’d dream of a change that would turn the tables. My dreams never included anyone else’s nightmare, and so when the tables had turned and I had the power, I would forgive those who have done me wrong. I think peerabuse.net is an amazing place for you to visit because you have the opportunity to see into people with similar experiences. See their nightmares, see their dreams, and see their dreams come true and their nightmares die. Seeing this will inspire you to create your own dream for your own future.

 Q: If you could have done one thing differently, what would it be?

A: If I could have done something differently, I believe it would not have taken me to the place I am today. Just as I am today thankful for the negative experiences of my past, I am truly content with the choices that I have made. Because LGBT teens have a much higher likelihood of suicide, I am thankful that I am still here. With that, I know there is a large amount of people who wish they could have done something differently. I say this because these are things that cannot be undone. It is like watching a movie that you have seen before and hoping that something you know is going to happen, won’t happen. People cannot be brought back to life, yet there are so many who believe they have nothing left to live for, unlike many; you have life, and this should be reason enough.

 

 

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Take a Stand Against Bullying

July 8, 2011 By Peer Abuse 11 Comments

Hey everyone! On July 15th at the Carolina First Center in Greenville, SC we will be holding the Take a Stand Against Bullying event from 4-8pm on Peer Abuse/Bullying. Check out the presenters of this event:

Admission is free and open to the public. If you are on Facebook, feel free to come over and let us know if you are planning to attend, may attend or not attending.

A big and huge shout out to our great sponsors! Thanks so much for your help! You all rock!

I am not sure why I cannot get the sponsor banner any larger. However, can list them here by name. Beverly Foster Blackley State Farm, The Clock of Spartanburg Restaurant, Elevations Salon of Greenville, Precpice Media, Sanchez Gardner, Fortune Makers, CFI Chapman, Locs of Wisdom, Jacobs Vision, The Sanctuary Salon, Dynamic Realty, Southern Estates and Antiques, Elegante’ Hair Studio, Realty-Advisors Carolina, Now Faith Ministries, Unique Teez, Niche Mag/One Love, Konnectwork, Joy 95.3, Clear Channel Media, HIS Radio, 107.3 JAMZ.

Brochures are done by Mr. Daniel Trouten of Pickens, SC.

Brochure_outside[1]

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Yes! It hurts to be left out!

June 22, 2011 By Peer Abuse 3 Comments

Oh another week and lots to do. There was one article that struck me and stayed with me since last week. It is entitled Ostracism Causes Lingering Pain in the Brain and written by Dr. Amen. As a survivor, I will admit that in the past I had an abnormal fear of this happening in my social settings. In the present, I just feel a lot of pain when this happens. At the same time, I have learned that if people do not want me in their lives, it is their loss and not mine. However, at the end of the day, the pain is still there. After reading this article, I understand why. As a survivor who is an adult, I am so glad more and more is coming out about this form of abuse. It is like my own feelings are finally being validated. Yes, they are real and yes, it is a serious problem.

Our society teaches us to “suck it up” and “don’t worry about these things” and that this behavior is a “fact of life.” I have also said many times that our society is not well and now more than ever we are seeing this. It is hard to deny because it slaps us in the face on a daily basis. We can say these things do not bother us and throw these other excuses around or we can admit that we are not allowing ourselves to be human. It is human nature to want to be accepted and included as we are wired to be social beings.

According to this article, ostracism cuts deeper and lasts a lot longer than any physical pain. It is like a form of bullying that does not leave bruises on us. Also, there are three stages in ostracism and they are the actual act of being excluded, coping and resignation. Man, can I relate to these. During the first stage, people have learned that they have been left out and are hit with the harsh reality. The pain is there and is real. So, instead of moving on, many times we move to the second stage to cope. During this phase, we start acting out in ways that will garner acceptance. It is like going against what you believe or selling your soul to these people in some respect. I see a lot of Queen Bee’s use a lot of bargaining during this phase. This is why these abusers have so many followers. They do not want to be excluded. However, if still being excluded and have been coping and getting nowhere, people will generally turn towards aggressive means or they give up completely. This is known as resignation. If the person has tried hard enough and still cannot get that acceptance, they take it into their own hands or just move on. I believe this is where school shooters come in. They have tried, worked hard, followed, sold their soul and done everything but still nothing changes. So, they take things into their own hands. Folks, a person can only take so much until they snap.

As I have been healing, I have learned to seek healthy relationships and people who accept and not reject me. This meant getting toxic people out of my life and keeping them out. It meant learning healthy social habits and staying away from people who do not want me. Are their times when I wanted to be accepted? Sure! I am human and more times will crop up. However, I have the wisdom now to know the difference.

If anyone is dealing with this and has done so in high doses, please seek a kind and accepting therapist. In the meantime, please try to love people as they are. We are so hardened these days and we want people to be just like us. That is impossible; no two people are alike. However, we can go back to the golden rule. Treat others as we wish to be treated. Something to certainly think about here.

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Oh! Those mean girls!

June 8, 2011 By Peer Abuse 4 Comments

The week has started off well here after taking a few days off last week to just kick back. Sometimes I need that anti-bullying break. If there is one thing I do on a daily basis, it is survive. In helping adult survivors, I am seeing and learning how far I have really come in my own healing. These things that seemed so important 15 years ago don’t seem so big now. For the most part, I look back and wonder how far I have really come. As I know one can heal from peer abuse, I now have this burning desire for other survivors to overcome these same demons.

One thing I try to understand is this whole mean girl concept. As children, we all had to deal with them. They were all over the school and neighborhood hungry for victims they could physically and psychologically devour. One would think that when they grew up and got a little life experience, they would leave these behaviors behind. Folks, that is the stuff that fairy tales are made of. I was posting on a message board online not long ago. I was taking the initiative to “play” on there and not be serious. I have a silly streak inside me and was exercising it on that particular day. One woman told on there that I was just “too sensitive” and she would not be around me. I explained why I posted what I did and my reply was “so, I have thus and such bother me and I do not act like this.” In some ways I was shocked. This was someone I do not even know yet someone I had always made an effort to be cordial to. So, I explained that I was not going to dwell on why someone does not like me based on something I posted. I had other ladies present who backed me up. However, I was a little shocked that a woman was willing to turn her back on me just because she thought I was too sensitive. Well, I am sensitive but, I am also strong willed, smart, accepting and have a strong social conscience. This woman has not spoken two words to me since that day. Now, I could bog myself down with thoughts of what I did to create this or offend her. Or, I can realize that it takes two for any discord to take place. I think the latter is a much better approach. Maybe I did not indicate to her that I was joking and forgot the “lol” at the end of the sentence. It is too bad because we are both middle age women who should have the maturity to sit down and talk this out without it taking an ugly turn. Yet, it is hard to talk anything out when someone has already made up their mind about you and not in a good way.

Dr. Robyn Silverman recently did a blog entitled “Woman to Woman: 7 Ways of Dealing with the Adult “Mean Girls” in your life” which I found to be helpful and interesting. Here are some suggestions she left:

1. Be grateful for the ones you got.

2. Realize it may not be what you think.

3. Approach them about it.

4. Pin point your contribution to the problem.

5. Discuss the general issue with other women.

6. Ask yourself; why do you need validation from this woman?

7. Step away.

I feel that Dr. Robyn left some great words of wisdom here but, I have to wonder how one can do this with an adult bully? Relational Aggression exists everywhere and not everyone outgrows this catty behavior. As adult survivors, I know we are affected a lot harder by these behaviors because they bring back so many unpleasant memories. The social isolation and exclusion not to mention being the target of vicious gossip takes a very long time to overcome. Also, I believe that we tend to seek validation from others more than we should. No, it is not good but, it goes with the territory. I am speaking in general here, there are exceptions to every rule. As someone who grew up being highly disliked by my peer group, I found myself as an adult constantly doing this and sometimes it is easy to fall back into this. We are human and we want to be accepted and liked. As humans, we are social beings and connection is important to us. However, these tips mentioned above certainly can be helpful to us in trying to heal and overcome these demons. Personally, I feel that adults who engage in this behavior are childish and immature. The good thing is that adult survivors do value friendships and generally make the best of friends. Plus, they have a strong handle on knowing what this behavior can do to others and would not wish it on anyone. Yes the empathy is there.

Survivors, you are beautiful. Yes, you are a work in progress and when you take the initiative towards healing, you will come out smelling like a rose. You are the ones who can really have a handle on this problem because you have been there. These steps above help and by taking it a day at a time, you can conquer it. I believe in all of you.

　

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Gosh! Will it ever end?

May 19, 2011 By Peer Abuse 6 Comments

This week has been quite interesting. However, what grabbed my attention and kept it was the recent two part episode of Dr. Phil entitled Bullies Beware. The viewers got to spend the first part with a self-professed bully. The second episode gave us a 13-year-old young man who was abused by peers in elementary school. He became an abuser by middle school. The kid was quite honest; he said he enjoyed the power that came with being an abuser as it was a rush. He even stated that “he was addicted to bullying.” As he is still in the developmental years, there is a good chance he can be reformed without many complications. Heck even his mother was considered a bully. It seemed as if she owned her bad behavior and was willing to reform in that area. The one that got my goat was this self-professed bully on Monday and part of Tuesday.

This woman is 26-years-old and seems quite proud of herself. She is also the epitome of what I consider a hard core bully to be. What I mean by hard core is the organic, true Queen Bee who has followers to do her dirty work. Not a pseudo-bully like we find in the “little workers” of the Queen. I am guessing she went through school manipulating and charming those around her. Let me take a few minutes and list some of her activities:

1. She says people will respect her whether they want to or not. She demands it. (um, controlling much?)

2. When she is in line waiting for gas, she will go up to the car in front of her and tell the owner that they need to move because her car is better than theirs. (Oh, it’s that sense of entitlement speaking out!)

3. Her cousin has Down Syndrome and she makes fun of her. (Okay, your lack of empathy is screaming through here)

4. Handicapped parking should not exist and she parks in these places because she can. (oh wow, more entitlement here! Does it ever end??)

5. She mishandled a tea cup poodle that belongs to her friend. (Um, those who harm animals usually are those with anti-social personality problems)

6. Oh and the most important tip off. A mother of a child who was abused by his peers confronted her and her behavior. Her response? “See, she is bullying ME!” This is so common of adult bullies. They spin things like this and are good at it.

Let us get a glimpse of this woman in action. The video was taken from Dr. Phil Show Channel on You Tube.

Adult Bully

As an adult survivor, I found her to be disturbing. Her lack of remorse or conscience was evident. Also, the narcissism that radiated through her and that dang sense of entitlement. One thing she did not lack was self-esteem. This woman was so arrogant and full of herself. It was hard to watch her to be honest. Yes, I have encountered this ilk all of my life. Yup, they gave me enough grief to last me 2300 lifetimes and then some. They were so good that they eventually made me believe I was the disgusting piece of crap they kept telling me I was. Well, not any longer. Their dysfunction is evident and it must suck to be them. Who do I blame for people like this? I blame society and their lack of knowledge for so long. As a child, I tried to make adults aware of this behavior in others only to be told I was “too sensitive”. Nobody wanted to put the stops out and hold these people accountable for their ilk. As a result, we have people like this woman in our society and are appalled at how they behave. We shouldn’t be! We created these monsters by not standing up to them and following them wanting to be a part of their world. As for this woman on the show, I do not know if she was a Queen Bee growing up or if she was abused by her peers. However, what I saw on that show was a perfect example of what comes of allowing this problem to fester. Not only do the abused suffer but so do those being abused. In many ways I pity her. I would not think it would be fun to run around without any conscience. I would miss out on really caring about others. Plus, the entitlement would leave me disappointed time and again as I would not always get the red carpet treatment.

Please, we do not need any more children growing up to be like this woman. Talk to your kids about this problem. Bystanders, stand up to these abusers and stop trying to be “wannabees.” Is this what we want for our future? Something to seriously think about here.

　

 

 

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When is it okay and not okay?

May 11, 2011 By Peer Abuse 4 Comments

 

Whew! We are half way through the week and I am surviving another day as an adult. A lot of news about Peer Abuse (bullying) in the news. Phoebe Prince can finally RIP because her abusers have been sentenced. Pretty lenient sentences if you ask me but, what do I know? I am not a legal expert just a B word one. My friends at Civilination had a great blog on PTSD and Annie Fox has kept it real with her blog discussing the decline of society. If that does not top it all, there has been some great discussion on my Facebook page about events happening in Dayton, OH where three teens set a young man’s hair on fire. When does it end? When is okay and not okay?

As an adult survivor of this form of abuse, I have heard the classic “life is not fair” many a time and I can tell you that any other adult survivor knows firsthand that life is not fair. Our civil and human rights were violated before we were old enough to drive and vote! Please folks, give me something I do not know already know. One thing I ponder and that is when is it okay and not okay to hurt someone?

To be alive and exist, we will all experience pain at some point. It pretty much goes with the territory. Yes, even when some choose to live with their rose colored glasses on, it does not mean they are completely immune to pain. The same goes with those who take up residence in their fishbowl with everything happily ever after. However, when is pain not okay? When is life not fair? There is an intangible line here and it is important to understand that. Life stops being fair when people are hurt and abused in any form of fashion. I am sorry but, there are no excuses for that behavior towards anyone. Competition? It’s everywhere and on some level human nature. However, it becomes problematic when it is intentional, flaunted and thrown in other faces to bring pain to them. Setting someone’s head on fire? Um, “life is not fair” will not fly with this one. Nor will it not fly when someone suffers from Complex PTSD. Oh and posting “accomplished” on Facebook after you drove your target to kill herself is not acceptable either. What is wrong with us? Have we lost all touch of empathy and compassion? Do we even know right from wrong any longer?

Nobody knows the hard knocks of life like an adult survivor of the B word does. Again, our civil and human rights were violated very early on and our life, liberty and pursuit of happiness did not always apply to us. It’s hard to dodge these hurdles when the abuse is rampant and it is eight-year-old you against 15 or so other children. Survivors get this and still battle these demons. Experiencing pain and having those we care about hurt us are a fact of life. Not getting a promotion that you felt was yours and went to someone else? Yeah, that’s life. Your grandmother passed away from cancer? Sure, we all have to deal with death. However, it is not okay to continue to harm others or bring them pain intentionally. There is a difference and something we all should think about.

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The loss of social empathy & social pain

May 4, 2011 By Peer Abuse 4 Comments

     I work daily online and talk to many people from different places in the world. Facebook is a very active place to go and interact with others. I do a lot of reading and observing as well. As the internet brings the world together, it’s not uncommon to talk to someone in the U.K or in the Ukraine all in the same day. The cultural differences are evident in these posts that I read. However, one constant remains the same and that is social exclusion and lack of social empathy. I am not targeting one particular group, culture or individual here, but am speaking as a whole. Adult Survivors of Peer Abuse grew up in a world where empathy was lacking in their social pain. If we cried, we were told to grow up and stop acting like a baby. However, if it was a case of rape or child abuse, oh boy did people run and empathize to the hilt. Even if it was a physical case, people were so sad. These situations warranted prayer and concern. Yet, when it came to social pain and abuse, it was as if people just turned a blind eye and shrugged it off. I think this is one reason why we are so sensitive socially and pick up on every headshake, word and glare thrown our way. Also, why we are so reactive and are triggered in social situations. It is as if we expect others to lash out at us if we say what is on our minds or complain about how others are making us feel. Peer Abuse is without a doubt something that must be experienced before it can be understood.

     A study was conducted by the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology and shared on the Livescience website. In this study, adults were playing a game of ball-toss. This was done online where the ball was thrown by one person to two other players. Some participants received the ball a fair 1/3 of the time. This was considered the inclusion condition. Others were tossed the ball 10 percent of the time which was considered exclusion condition. Another group which was the control group did not participate in the game at all. Ratings were based on an 11-point scale, each point represented by a facial expression showing an increasing magnitude of pain. Those excluded students indicated a significantly higher pain experience linked to the two social-exclusion scenarios compared with the inclusion group (4.6 versus 3.7). For the other scenarios, the pain ratings didn’t differ between the groups. Three other experiments using the cyberball game, with various tweaks, showed similar results. In one, the players had to indicate how a victim of bullying (named Anna) felt after “Roger” teased her, shouting “earthquake” when she passed by due to her being overweight. The exclusion students rated her pain an average of 5.5 versus 4.3 rating from the inclusion group. At the end of the day, it showed that social pain as much as if not more than any other pain someone would experience.

     Folks, it’s time to get real here. Social pain is very real and as you see, it matters to others just as much as any other type of pain would. I am seeing so much lack of social empathy online. People in forums just ignoring others. Then, some will exclude others in offline activities and continuously rub this into those who are not included in these activities. Facebook and Twitter are hotbeds for this. If the person was to speak up, they would get flamed, told to get lost or to stop being so sensitive. Newsflash: these things DO hurt! As an adult survivor myself, I have found myself in many of these situations. As a survivor, what have I done? Sat at the computer and cried. If I spoke out, I got told how silly I was being and childish. I will always have this with me because I am a survivor. However, I have learned to handle it. Plus, I am not alone here. Why do we do this? What makes it okay to verbally ignore others? What is missing with us? Manners have flown out the window and it’s bad to have them these days. Our society has taught us that this lack of empathy is acceptable! People, words hurt! Not only that, but they kill. I can answer all of these questions and that is lacking social empathy or pain for others is not acceptable and this is the culture we have created. We keep quiet about our pain and by doing so we allow this to fester and continue.

     The next time you are online, please try and interact with as many people as you can. A recognition or a smile can make a person’s day. Kindness can go a long way. It’s not hard to do. As humans, don’t we all deserve to be included? Something for us all to think about.

　

 

 

 

 

　

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