If I had a dollar for every time I was told to ‘be a man’ or ‘get over it’ or ‘build a thicker skin’ between the ages of 8 and 14, I would be a very rich man. And I know girls got it even tougher in my generation. Everyone was expected to get over being mistreated in their own funny ways. But, unfortunately I couldn’t just ‘get over it’ and it seems that there are a lot of other people who didn’t either.
A study in the US has shown that those who were victims of bullying in their younger years carried a higher level of a particular protein into adulthood. The protein (known as ‘C-reactive’), which has been linked to heart attacks and strokes, indicates that the body is fighting an infection, reacting to an injury or responding to a chronic condition. It seems as though the bullying a child receives can trick the body into thinking it needs to raise its defences well into adulthood.
Studies have long shown that childhood victims of bullying display social, psychological, and health consequences in the long term, whereas bullies themselves display minimal ill effects.
Additionally, research from the Institute of Psychiatry at King’s College, London, found that childhood victims of bullying were more likely to have poor mental and physical health long into adulthood, as much as 40 years later (so, into their 50s).
Back in the 1950s every excuse under the roof was made for bullying to be OK. ‘Boys will be boys’ was a phrase said all too many times and too much testosterone and boisterous personality were constantly blamed. But the reality is that so many of us were bullied in one form or another.
We were told to accept it as a way of life and to live with it. Why? Because bullies then weren’t diagnosed with learning or social disorders. They weren’t treated as kids who needed help. We let it play out because it was ‘normal’ for a few kids in every class to have an angry or mean streak.
Bullying of the 1950s wasn’t just scarring because it went unhindered. It was mean. Some kids were picked on for everything. If you weren’t smart or if you were smart, you still got bullied. If you were attractive or if you weren’t attractive, you still got bullied. If your family was affluent or if you were considered poor, you still got bullied. If you said or did something that separated you from the rest of the class, you were definitely bullied. It was a time when no one was safe and no one understood that it was a problem that needed to be stopped.
So, perhaps we are the generation that suffered the most? There was no support and no stopping bullying when we were at school and now science has shown that it still haunts us now.
Were you bullied as a child? Do you feel that it still affects you now? Do you think you’ve suffered health problems as a result? Let us know in the comments below…
IMPORTANT LEGAL INFO This article is of a general nature and FYI only, because it doesn’t take into account your personal health requirements or existing medical conditions. That means it’s not personalised health advice and shouldn’t be relied upon as if it is. Before making a health-related decision, you should work out if the info is appropriate for your situation and get professional medical advice.