Olivia was subjected to such vicious verbal and physical attacks at school that she was scared to go to class and ended up skiving lessons up to four days a week.

In the worst incident, when Olivia was 15, she was pushed down concrete steps at school and passed out at the bottom. She was taken to hospital with extensive bruising and a chipped bone in her back, where she stayed for a week on painkillers, unable to sit down or lie on her back.

Olivia said: “I felt so humiliated. I never got an apology and the school only suspended the boy for a week. I didn’t take it further as I didn’t want to make it worse.”

In fact, that attack was simply the culmination of years of suffering Olivia had experienced at the hands of her fellow pupils. In her first week at secondary school she was nicknamed ‘Hagrid’. She was abused every day, verbally and physically, once having her head smashed against the toilet, to the point where she was scared of going to school.

Olivia said: “I’d wake up at 4am, terrified of having to go to school. I’d make myself sick and stay at home instead. I didn’t want to burden my mum with my problems but when I started suffering from panic attacks, she knew something was seriously wrong.”

After consulting the Headteacher, Olivia and her mum felt that the school was not prepared to deal with the problem, so she was taken out of the system and home-schooled for almost two years. However, the bullying continued when one of bullies moved next door to Olivia. As she would leave the house, he’d attack her with a home-made flame thrower.

Olivia was slowly re-integrated back into her school but although Olivia’s tutor would sit in on some of her lessons and Olivia made two good friends, the bullying never ceased. Feeling increasingly alone and angry, she began to skip school and then started to self-harm. She and her friend would often miss four days of school a week, spending their time walking round the shops, or sitting at home. Angry and upset that no one seemed to notice her suffering, Olivia cut herself with a razor.

Olivia said: “It became like an addiction. Everyday, when I was angry, I’d cut myself and I’d feel a little better. A couple of times it went a bit far and I knew it was a mistake, but I felt so alone I didn’t want to stop.”

Olivia finally realised that it was time to tell her mum everything. With her mum’s understanding and help, she began to turn her life around. With her mum’s constant support, Olivia returned to school. No longer alone but with someone to turn to, Olivia stopped self-harming, her self-confidence grew and she lost weight. Olivia felt that she’d taken control of her life and the bullying began to stop.

Olivia said: “The boy who had nicknamed me Hagrid actually came over to me at school and apologized, which felt fantastic. I now feel comfortable in my own skin. I’m so glad I told my mum and I’m so grateful that she helped me overcome the bullying.”

What help is out there? - Beatbullying’s website, www.beatbullying.org, contains loads of advice. You can chat to others on the website, look at videos and download music. Beatbullying also runs workshops in schools
and youth groups. So if you’re being bullied, or want more help, get in touch with them!

You can also download our bullying helpsheet by clicking here