Supporting the National Day of Action against bullying and violence

The theme of this year’s National Day of Action against Bullying and Violence (18 March) is Kindness Culture and is a timely reminder for all of us to help reduce cyberbullying.

Celebrating 12 years of action, NDA is Australia’s major bullying prevention initiative that connects schools and communities to find workable solutions to prevent bullying.

Optus continues to support digital safety online with Optus Digital Thumbprint, a series of free, curriculum-aligned workshops covering topics such as Cyberbullying and Respectful Relationships Online.

The workshop covers the importance of respectful relationships online and students are asked to consider their impact when interacting online. Topics discussed include consent online, image-based abuse, and strategies to seek help for themselves or others.

We asked for some tips from Kimberley Aguet a Therapeutic Counsellor at Virtual Psychologist.

“Bullying is an important topic of interest as it’s everywhere. It can occur at all stages of life and can have lifelong effects on people due to the impacts of people’s psychological and physical wellbeing,” Kimberley says. 

“I’ve had elderly clients who are still affected by bullying experiences they had as a child.  Some effects of bullying include challenges with the anxiety, depression, trauma, self-esteem, confidence, sleep disturbances, aggression, self-harming behaviours and academic performance,” she says. 

Here are some of Kimberley’s tips to help children and parents deal with bullying.

Children can:

• Tell the person bullying them in a firm voice to ‘Stop, I don’t like it’.
• Can choose to ignore the person and walk away.  This may help to stop the bullying as the bully isn’t getting a reaction.
• Talk to a trusted adult and tell them what happened.   It is important not to keep feelings to yourself and an adult can help develop a plan to stop the bullying.
• Avoid the person and places where the bullying usually happens.
• Ensure they’re with a buddy and not alone. If they don’t have a buddy, teachers can help them to find a buddy.
• Engage in activities to build their confidence, for example, participate in sports, clubs, and other activities you enjoy. 

Parents can:

• Look for changes in behaviour in your child, for example, more physically or verbally aggressive, decreased self-esteem, withdrawing from activities, loss of friends, avoiding social situations, unexplained injuries, self-destructive behaviours such as harming themselves, talks about suicide, nightmares or lack of appetite.
• Listen to your child, remain calm and provide your child with comfort and support.
• Reassure your child that telling you about the bullying is the right thing to do.
• Educate your child about bullying behaviour so they are aware that it’s not okay and should tell someone if they are being bullied. 
• Talk to the child’s teacher about the bullying issue and the ask if they can do some anti- bullying activities with the class to encourage a positive learning environment such as Optus Digital Thumbprint workshops.
• Instil good values in your child and teach them to respect other people regardless of differences.
• Remember that children who bully often experience bullying themself.  This doesn’t make it okay, but it is important they also get the support they need. 

Launched in 2013 and endorsed by the eSafety Commissioner as a Trusted eSafety Provider, Optus Digital Thumbprint gives young people the tools they need for positive, responsible, and authentic online experiences.

Virtual Psychologist participated in the Optus' social innovation accelerator, Future Makers in 2017 and provides text based mental health support and counselling services. For more information on mental health see their informative range of articles.

Register for Optus Digital Thumbprint workshops here:
https://www.digitalthumbprint.com.au/digital-workshops/

Find more about The Office of the eSafety Commissioner:
https://www.optus.com.au/connected/families/meet-the-esafety-commissioner

If you feel a young person in your life needs help and support, please let them know that Kids Helpline is there for them at any time. Find out more at https://kidshelpline.com.au/ or dial 1800 55 1800.

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