No Bully Zone

The thing about bullying is there is no one solution to ending the problem.  There are a lot of resources of how to deal with it (as shown on our website) which may be of some help but the truth is the victim has to build confidence and self esteem because I don’t believe written material is enough.  It is a world known fact the martial arts have been making a positive impact on youngsters out there crying for help.  Most young people will not admit to their friends, teachers or parents of being bullied because they believe it to be a sign of weakness or may even fear reprisals from thugs.  Most parents, including me, choose to believe it does not happen to their children but the stats say 1 in 3 Australian children will experience bullying.

What makes me an expert on this subject is I, too, was a victim of bullying at school which went on for years and this is why I took up the martial arts.  I had to work out different routes from class to class to avoid confronting bullies but they would always catch up with me eventually.  I would be fighting in the stairwell, classroom, school playground and en route home.  There was no end to it.  I never told my parents and I never told the teachers or my friends.

There was very little known about the martial arts at the time but it sounded a good idea at the time.  Training, especially those days, was a lot of hard work and my main motivation, at the time, was to get back at these thugs.  By the time I got good enough I was happy to take the thugs on but they shied away, to my disappointment.

Bullying causes scarring which never seems to go away.  How many times do adults look at people and say in jest, ‘that guy must’ve been belted up at school’ but what they are really saying is that person must've been bulliled atg school hence their behaviour. 

The martial arts builds confidence and self esteem the fun way.  One thing for sure, the martial arts school is a 'no bully zone' where they can talk and make friends in a non-hostile environment.
GA