Welcome!
My name is Arianna and I have a confession to make. I was bullied. In fact, I'm bullied every day.
Let me tell you part of my story so you understand. I was born in a little town in Russia named Sobinka. My birthmother had me on the way to the hospital in a taxi. I was ten weeks early. The nurses maybe weren't trained for this kind of thing actually happening so they may have struggled getting the incubator working and getting me hooked up to it. I'm not really sure, but that is what I've been told. It's probably true. I was adopted by my American parents when I was five months old. When we got back to the states, I was immediately diagnosed with cerebral palsy. Cerebral palsy is caused when a baby is born so prematurely that their lungs aren't fully developed. This causes a chain reaction. Lungs don't function, baby can't breathe. The baby has a stroke because there is not enough oxygen getting to the brain. Parts of the brain get damaged or die and the baby ends up having cerebral palsy or CP for short. That is what happened to me. In my case, my left side of my brain (the right side of my body) was damaged. When you see me, I limp on my right side. I drag my foot a little and my foot turns slightly inward. I'm lucky because I've seen some other kids with CP and they're wheelchair bound for the rest of their lives. I'm one of the lucky ones and I'm very thankful for that.
Being disabled, heck, being different makes me one hell of a target to bullies. It's not that I'm weak or just shrivel up and cry when people say things or stare at me. I'm witty and I'm great at instant comebacks. But what I've learned is bullies don't care. They find something wrong with their victim and latch onto it like a parasite and it seems like they will never leave the victim alone. And to be honest, there is no one way to deal with a bully that works every time on every bully. Why? Because each bully is different. They all do damage, but each one is unique. That's what made it terrifying for me. That's why 90 percent of teens don't speak up. The kid at school threatened to kill me. I didn't want to tell my parents because I had a feeling that if I told them they would talk to the principal and he would give my bully in school suspension, but within a couple days, a week tops, I would be back at the bully's mercy and he would do a lot worse than spit insults at me.
The point is: Bullying is terrifying because you feel like you always lose. You feel like nothing works and it makes you scared. No matter how had to pray for him to go away, he won't. You feel scared. You feel alone.
The point of this blog is an escape for people who are being bullied. It's not just for victims of bullying, but parents too because it can be scary for them too. When I was being bullied, I felt like I could talk to no one. The school wouldn't listen. The teachers didn't believe me. I had nowhere to turn. I just wanted someone there that could say, "I've been there. It will be okay. Just hold on for a little longer. It will be okay." I didn't have someone. That's why I created this blog. I know how it feels to not want to go to school. When you do, you feel a knot in your stomache and you just want to throw up because you feel hopeless. This blog is an outlet for everyone. Come here and share your stories. Come for help and to ask questions. Come here for escape.
Also, I know how scary it is to speak up. It's is absolutely and utterly terrifying. It is okay if you are scared to say something to someone. I was too. It is okay if you don't want to say anything, but maybe this blog will help you find your voice. I want to help kids that are too scared to realize there are people out there wanting to help. Maybe you'll find your voice if you've lost it. Hopefully, this blog will make people realize that speaking up against bullying is hard, but it is possible. It's not easy, but it's possible. And sometimes all you need is a little hope to get you through tough times.
I hope you like this blog and come back often. I hope it helps you. Leave comments or message me if you have anything you would like talk to me about. If you have any suggestions or would like to see something written about that I have not covered, let me know! Share with your friends. Thank you so much!
Arianna
And also, remember that being different is not a bad thing. I think being different makes you, you, and you shouldn't change that for anyone:) You're all beautiful.
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