Taunted as a child: What can you do to combat the long-term effects of bullying?

Bullying expert Christelle Schläpfer says those who have been bullied in the past often have a negative attitude towards life. “You get the feeling that you always have to be careful about what you say, that everyone is against you, and that life is completely unfair.” In such cases, a so-called gratitude journal can be a little support. The most successful thing in German-speaking countries is to ask “What three wonderful things did I experience today?” for three minutes each in the morning and evening. Guided “6-minute diary” in which answers to questions such as are written. will be written. Schläpfer: “This can help you focus on the positive.”

People with a history of bullying should acknowledge the fear at the time, says Christelle Schläpfer, because this emotion protects them to some extent from getting into the next dangerous situation. Many of those affected also regret that their colleagues did not stand by them while they were being mocked. “This is often worse for them than the bullying itself.”

Those who suffer from the long-term consequences of repeated teasing often find themselves faced with situations that re-trigger old emotions and draw conclusions from them that arise from so-called special logic. This means that people with a history of bullying often tend to feel an attack in everything, Schläpfer says. In this case, he suggests considering how much this feeling is based on facts. “Perhaps I assume my colleagues at work are excluding me, although there is actually no evidence of this.”

In his practice in Winterthur, Schläpfer advises families with children who are being bullied. It often turns out that some parents were bullied while at school. The expert says that if the same thing happens to their daughter or son, they react sensitively accordingly. “They often suffer more than those directly affected and have particularly emotional reactions to school, making the situation worse for the child.”

Someone who is heavily teased at a young age definitely doesn’t want to experience that again, and that’s why he’s thin-skinned. So-called self-regulation techniques help here, so that those affected can reduce the physical response to negative emotions and thus calm down. These include breathing exercises or 5 sense awareness exercises. The latter aims to focus on what you hear, smell, taste, feel and smell in stressful situations. People who are bullied literally lose control of themselves when they feel threatened, Schläpfer says. “These exercises bring you back to your body.”