“Friday afternoon, a group of kids decided to embarrass me. It was my senior year pep rally, my senior cheer night. This was the day they decided to put me down. Even after standing up for myself, they continued on with their foolish comments. I couldn’t stop wondering, ‘Why me?’ Then, I realized I was asking the wrong question. ‘Why do it at all?’ It doesn’t matter that it was done to me, it matters that it happened. It’s unacceptable.”
‘This picture was taken 2 hours before I was bullied in front of my entire school. They made a mockery of me.’: Teen stands up against bullying, ‘I cheered in front of them with a smile’
‘All done,’ she mustered out, with an approving ‘finally mom’ look. It was the hardest decision.’: Mom of 10-year-old bullied for facial deformities vows to fight back after her death, ‘Sophia was like no one in this world’
“I’ll never forget the moment we were told the news. ‘Sophia’s mouth, hands and feet are severely deformed. She might not survive birth.’ But she did. Her birth was the exact moment our lives changed forever. When they laid her on my chest, a voice in my mind said, ‘Comfort her, you need to comfort her.’ I was in shock as my little girl stared into my eyes. I’d never seen anyone like her.”
‘I used to be a ‘mean girl.’ I look back and wonder, ‘How on earth did this happen?’ It’s simple: I hated myself.’: Woman admits to ‘cowardly’ past, claims ‘dimming another woman’s light doesn’t make yours shine brighter’
“I was a mean girl. Not the glamorous kind that wear pink on Wednesdays, but an insecure girl that ran with the ‘popular’ crowd. Truth is, I’m not even sure how I earned a spot there. It never felt natural. It felt like a competition to stay there. I was so busy trying to fit in and that I ignored my moral compass. I was a coward. If you look back on your school days and remember a time someone made you feel inadequate, know you were not. We were.”
‘Can you watch David tonight?’ I took her newborn. That night, I missed the call from the Sherriff’s Department.’: Mom loses daughter to suicide, leaving behind newborn son, now lives life ‘to make her proud’
“That night, I went to bed and forgot to take my phone off silent. I didn’t hear it ring. I missed the call. Her sister woke me to 3 words that changed my life forever: ‘Brenna killed herself.’ For so many years, I’d pleaded with God to heal her depression. This not what I meant. Now, Baby David will never remember his mommy.”
‘But how will they function in the REAL world?!’ People judge us for homeschooling our kids. Truth is, they already are.’: Mom places children in homeschool after relentless bullying, claims they went from ‘depressed shells of humans’ to ‘thriving’
“After a long year of our kids feeling burnt out, bullied, and unsupported at their private school, we made the difficult choice to bring them home. I wish I could say it was an easy transition or that it immediately felt like the right choice. If I’m being honest, it felt like the only choice. They struggled to go to school each day and their passion for learning dwindled. We knew we had to act fast. So, we dove right in, grieving the life we were leaving behind.”
‘I went to get my hair done, sat down with my stylist, and the chair BROKE. I needed to make a change.’: Woman starts world’s first ever plus-size salon, reminds us ‘beauty has no weight limit’
“Strangers vandalized my business out of hate. Destroyed air conditioners, smeared human poop on our windows. I received death threats. But through it all, I let it roll. off. my. shoulders. I was creating a safe space for women of all shapes and sizes to feel glamorous and pampered. The world is such a cold place. I can’t change that. But what I can do is keep a positive attitude!”
‘There’s NO ISSUE with kids wearing knockoff shoes. None. Your kid didn’t care about a Nike logo until YOU did.’: Mom urges us to let ‘kids be kids,’ makes plea to end off-brand shaming
“Recently, I have come across a lot of people making fun of these shoes. In fact, it’s coming from a lot of parents with children (shaking my head). So, what happens? Your kid goes to school, sees the less fortunate student who has on the ‘off brand’ and now your child is mimicking YOU and bullying another student. Please quit teaching kids that name brands means something.”
‘We found McKenzie in the bathroom. She hung herself. Get here now!’ It was too late.’: 9-year-old girl commits suicide after relentless bullying, family’s grief inspires ‘anti-bullying’ foundation
“They kept calling her ‘ugly and black’. At first, she wasn’t afraid. But it got to the point where too many were joining in and it became a daily occurrence. During the drive, I prayed for a miracle as my son slept behind me. I just wanted to see her. To make sure she would be okay. But I’d never get to see her alive again. Now the only way I can ever be with her again is at a grave site. McKenzie Adams. I will not let here name die.”
‘If I drink beer, maybe they’ll like me.’ ‘Maybe if I smoke this.’ Their words cut deep. I was desperate for acceptance. When it wasn’t enough, I stopped going to class and flunked with all F’s.’
“I thought the bullying would stop when my mom died of cancer, but it returned full force. I remember being yanked off my feet by my ponytail, blood running down my leg. I still wasn’t good enough, so I dropped out. When I returned to school at 31, a mother of 3 kids, I thought the same failure awaited me again. I was absolutely terrified.”
‘You’d be SO MUCH prettier if you lost weight.’ I was 10. My siblings got juice, while I was only offered water. When we got into fights, ‘fatty’ was their low blow.’
“With a disgusted look, my own trainer asked, ‘Why are you SO overweight?’ I felt like I was just punched in my (fat) gut. I cancelled my gym membership and dropped out of high school. Ashamed and embarrassed, I just wanted to crawl in a hole and cry. I always felt in competition with my siblings.”
