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Highmark Healthy High 5 targets five key areas affecting children - including bullying. It's a big problem at school. Statistics show 160,000 children in America miss school every day because they're afraid of being bullied.
One Dillsburg teen says she endured bullying for years until she couldn't take it anymore.
Eighteen-year-old Amanda Mitchell of Dillsburg finds peace caring for her horse, Justice. And justice is something Amanda wanted for years.
"In first grade, it started with - my name is Amanda, so the favorite joke was "Aman-DUH," she said. "Another thing was my size. I'm not skinny. I'm never going to be a size two, but apparently people didn't like me not being a size two."
Amanda says the bullying began in first grade. Other children were picking on her, and that's all her mother thought it was.
"(I thought) that it was normal interaction between children," said Amanda's mother. "That if you have brothers and sisters you learn to put up with it. Being an only child, she didn't have that picking."
To Amanda, though, it was more than that. She says her pleas for help were ignored at home and at school.
"The teacher said 'Oh, just ignore him,'" she said. "And I thought no - if this person is bothering me, you're in charge, and you need to do something about this."
Amanda says nothing was done and the bullying continued through second, third, fourth and fifth grade. Amanda says it hurt her self-esteem. She describes feeling like "road kill."
"It means you really feel run over and dead inside, and the flies - the bullies - are gathering around, picking up what's left," she said.
Amanda says the bullying didn't stop there. Next Monday, abc27 will tell you what happened when the bullying came to a head in sixth grade, and how it affected Amanda's education.
The one parent I visited I end up telling her I see where her daughter gets it from. I said she's just like you. Same disrespect. I was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY and I never really had to many problems in school because well.....they knew I would have kicked there *ss. If my daughter is wrong...I let her know she's wrong and she better fix herself, but when she is right......I will fight till the end for her.
Parents better moniter the phone conversations and messages there kids are sending. If they hear their kids badgering others they should find out what that is all about and straighten it out. Parents have to take some of the blame for there kids actions. I check my daughter and let her know if I dont like whats being said on the phone and want to know whats going on. I didnt raise my son or daughter to ridicule and put down others or to be vicious and vandictive. There are kids that just thrive on the drama. My daughter can get caught up in that sometimes also but I let her know she's being a drama queen and to knock it off.
Parenting is hard work....and if you are not cut out for hard work....than you shouldnt be a parent. We are raising the worst group of disrespectful kids I've ever seen. Dont expect others to raise your kids for you. REMEMBER YOUR THE PARENT FIRST.....THE FRIEND SECOND.
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