The Human Library
Surviving Bullying
Bullied through most of middle school.
What happened
It wasn't one dramatic incident — it was years of small, constant erosion. A joke here, being left out there, a group chat I found out about by accident. Nothing bad enough on its own to tell an adult about, which somehow made it harder to talk about, not easier.
What I wish people understood
That it wasn't "just kids being kids." It changed how I saw myself for years afterward — I walked into every new room already braced for people to eventually turn on me, long after the actual bullying had stopped.
What helped
One teacher who noticed, without making it a whole production, and just made sure I had somewhere safe to eat lunch for a while. Finding even one real friend, which made the rest of it survivable. Eventually realizing the group that did it had nothing to do with who I actually was.
What didn't help
Being told to "just ignore it" or "kill them with kindness," as if the problem was my reaction instead of their behavior. Adults who minimized it because nothing physical happened.
What I know now
That the story those years tried to tell me about myself — unlikable, always about to be excluded — was never true. It took a long time to actually believe that, but it was never true.
One thing I want someone else to hear
If you're a kid going through this: it is not a preview of the rest of your life, even though it feels like the whole world right now. It really does end.