Following on from my recent blog on social media use and the effects that cyberbullying can have to someone’s well-being I think it’s important to continue to raise awareness on the subject and the consequences of it.
There are a lot of quotes and messages going around with the message “be kind”, which are motivating but only if people are open to looking at themselves and their actions and choosing to be kinder, more self aware and understanding.
There are people who may feel that they are being honest and helpful with their comments and not realising the damage and impact their comments are having on others because they are not seeing things from the other person's perspective, only their own. That is where the danger lies.
If you go about life seeing things from only your point of view, reacting based on your internal world and your own unresolved issues, not being open to try to see things from other people’s point of view then how do you know that your comments or actions are being helpful to someone else? Just because you see it as being a certain way doesn’t mean that everyone else will.
It’s easy for someone to hide behind their phone, laptop or any other screen and go around hurting and abusing others on a large scale and not realising that although it’s online there are real people on the other side of it.
Hurt people hurt people. People hurt others as a result of their own inner strife and pain - Will Bowen
Not all hurt people hurt others but the only reason why someone would want to hurt someone else is because they are hurting inside themselves. Taking out your anger and pain onto someone else may make you feel better about yourself temporarily but it’s totally unfair that someone else has to suffer as a consequence. No one deserves that.
It’s a destructive cycle not just for the person on the end of your hate but for you too. In families it can be passed on through generations, on social media it could ultimately lead to someone feeling so isolated and depressed that the only way they can stop their pain is to take their own life.
What kind of world are we living in if this continues to happen and people are left struggling with their mental health on their own? Where people are feeling so low and in so much constant pain that they don't see any other way out?
If you are have experienced online abuse please don't deal with it all on your own. I know it's hard to reach out especially if you've feel unheard and rejected before but please keep trying, there is support available and people who will listen to you and want to be there for you.
The only way to break this cycle is for all of us to stop and take a look at ourselves, work on yourself to process any pain or hurt that you have experienced, take responsibility for your words, actions and behaviour.
Heal yourself first before taking out your issues onto someone else.