Bullying: Noun, A series of comments that can lead to the death of the loved

“Walrus”, “The fat girl”, “The pudgy one”. These are just a few of the words and phrases that were spoken in my direction each and every day; pretty and beautiful were not even in my vocabulary. Bullying is a huge issue in modern day society leading to suicide, self depravation, and extreme depression, and each human being must realize that each word they say may be the last word that a victim of bullying hears.

I never really faced the bad side of bullying until sixth grade, or my first year in middle school. Believing in myself, I walked in the first day, nervous, but still the most confident kid in the world. No one was going to get in my way that was for sure; however, just the opposite seemed to happen. My most vivid memory was in physical education. We had to run laps around the court by class. It was our turn to run and as I rounded the corner I was called a walrus, actually someone boldly shouted to me: “WALRUS!” What does one reply to that; how does one react? That was the first time in my life that I felt defeated.
I remember one kid telling me not to lean on the desk because I would break it. That opened my eyes to a new view of this cruel world.

Summer then approached. It was my chance to change myself, and that was exactly what I did. I went to Hollister one day and tried on a polo-shirt (the typical look for a “Gucci Middle” attendee), and it was a size large. Yes it fit me fine, but I was determined to fit in a smaller size and look even better. I went to spinning classes, boot camp, every gym workout known to man, and ate high protein meals with low amounts of processed foods and non-essential sugars. I worked so hard, each and every day, almost to the point where I began to starve myself. Slowly I moved from eating healthily to becoming anorexic. It was very scary for my parents I know, as I reached 90 pounds at the age of 13-14. I didn’t realize anything was wrong with my health until I woke up on my tile floor one night after I passed out from a lack of nutrition. From then on I have become a cheerleader, and a pageant girl. Now beauty is a huge factor in my life. I shouldn’t have had to suffer through those traumatic events just to get to where I am today, however.

That is what people don’t understand. Bullying is not simply the physical beating of an individual. No, it is the little comment, the small word thrown in a conversation, which can lead past depression to death. Only those who have suffered truly know how it feels.