BULLIED

Story 328

I have a genetic abnormality called Turner syndrome. I'm not going to go into the medical explanation for it, but I will say that it makes me extremely short. Because of that, I take a growth hormone through an injection in my thighs. I started taking it in about second grade, and it did work, but it worked very slowly and I was still very below average height for my age. For the next few years, I was bullied for my height. I was called rude names like "midget", "smurf", and even "freak". It was awful. I made it fairly clear that I didn't enjoy being called these names, but the other kids persisted. Now, I'm in eight grade and I've been taking the growth hormone for a more that five years. Since I take it in my thighs, as a result they are fairly large despite the fact that I'm quite skinny. I have cellulite and stretch marks on my thighs and am bullied because of it. People say that my cellulite makes me ugly. They say my stretch marks mean I'm fat. I am also lacking all teeth. I do not have adult lateral teeth (the ones on either side of your very front teeth). A few month ago, my baby lateral teeth came out. They would have come out earlier, but my orthodontist instructed me to keep them in as long as possible. I had all but two teeth, and the two missing were at the front of my mouth so the gaps were visible almost every time I opened my mouth. I didn't want to smile. It talked much less, and I tried to cover my mouth every time I laughed. I was the bully in this situation. I was the one telling myself negative things.Bullying isn't always something one person does to another, sometimes you can bully yourself. Bullying is a horrible thing for anyone to do to anyone, wether it be another person or yourself. I have fake teeth in place of my missing ones now, but to this day I still try to cover my mouth when I laugh simply out of habit. I still try to wear jeans or other long pants to cover my cellulite when I can. The effects of every type of bullying last. Always. So wether it's cyperbullying, physical altercation, teasing, or names calling, people take the things you say and do to heart. People never forget bullying. So next time you're about to comment something rude on social media, point out a physical feature on someone, or discriminate against anybody for something they can't control, stop and ask yourself if that's how you want to be remembered, because if you do, they'll never forget it.