Bullying: Part 1
by Anna Donaldson
CBS 42 News
2007-11-23 10:05:00.0
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The effects of bullying have gotten so severe, both parents and children are suffering. Experts say bullying universally affects every child who encounters it. But parents are hit hard as well.
Dr. Allan Beane is an expert on bullying. Not only from his 30 years in education, but mainly due to a personal story, a tragedy involving his son Curtis.
"Well, Curtis was bullied in seventh grade and we did a few things but mostly left it up to him to try to solve the problem," said Beane.
But as time went on, things got worse.
"It really got bad for him in seventh grade, so we transferred him to a different school system and things were fine in the middle school there. He had friends. But then when he was 15 he was in an auto accident and lost two fingers on his right hand, and kids were cruel to him all the way through high school. They would call him pizza hand. The constant mistreatment he received created a lot of health problems for him and even into the young adult years," said Beane.
When Curtis was 23, his father says he got involved in the wrong crowd.
"He met some friends who convinced him to take meth to release the hurt and pain and to get some degree of satisfaction. And he took meth and it killed him," said Beane.
Not only did bullying affect his son's life, it also was hurtful to Dr. Beane as a parent.
“I mean you go to work and you worry about them. When your kids hurt, you hurt," said Beane.
Experts say bullying causes deep psychological scars.
UAB Psychologist Dr. Vivian Friedman said, "Certainly loss of self esteem, sometimes increased anxiety and fears almost to the point of paranoia."
“When kids are persistently insulted everyday and sometimes for years, they develop post traumatic stress," said Beane.
Parents should know the warning signs.
"Any kind of regression in behavior. A child who starts bed wetting who never bed wet before," said Friedman.
After his son's death, Dr. Beane decided to devote his life to educating others on the harmful effects of bullying; the same effects which he says took his son's life.
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