Harassment has taken place through electronic equipment. The electronic devices that are used consist of such equipment as computers, tablets and cell phones. The communication tools which are used in cyberbullying include websites, text messages, chat, and social media sites. Rumors sent through social networking sites or emails, embarrassing pictures, fake profiles, videos, websites, and mean emails and text messages are all examples of cyberbullying.
One of my biggest insecurities is my weight because I suffered from childhood obesity. Growing up, most of my family members were overweight, hence; I grew up thinking it was normal. I did not know it was a genetic aspect of our family. I was comfortable through my elementary school up until I started high school. The perception of a good-looking person as being anyone who had a slim figure started to get to me. My biggest fear was being ridiculed and feeling ugly. One of my friends on Facebook created a meme illustrating that the result of addiction to fast food was becoming overweight. In addition, he added my picture stating that it would be the outcome of the addiction. He proceeded to add smiley faces to the meme and shared it on Facebook and in students’ WhatsApp groups. Numerous people made cruel comments, and others continued sharing it on different social media platforms. It was a severe attack on my character. I had to delete my pictures because I did not want people to associate me with that meme.
Unlike being bullied face-to-face, cyberbullying happens at any time of the day. It did not matter where I was because I would find the same meme on other people's profiles. As people came across it, they continued sharing it. Most of them thought it was hilarious, but it was the most hurtful thing I have ever experienced. because the situation was aggravated by the fact that random people on social media who stumbled upon the meme would go ahead and share it. It was not relevant whether they knew me or not. I was exposed to the entire world, and I had no power over the situation. My friend apologized for creating it, but it had gone viral. Unlike a situation where one can stand up to a bully and stop the bullying, cyberbullying could not be controlled. Anonymous people spread the meme, and I could not share my photos online anymore because I would be associated with it. Without a doubt, my life changed, my confidence was low, and I was indiscernible on social media networks. To date, I have no power over who shares the meme and the comments they make. In fact, it was a life changing experience that I am yet to overcome.
After the meme had gone viral, I had major issues with insecurity, and I skipped school for more than a week. It was difficult to face my schoolmates because they were either making fun of me or talking behind my back. It affected my performance and I was behind the rest of my classmates. It took the intervention of my teacher to get me back to school on a daily basis. My self-esteem was exceptionally low, as I was reserved and did not interact with my peers. I would choose to stay in the classroom during recess because I was afraid of the negative attention I would get if I went outside to relax. As a result, my inactivity led to increase in my weight. I was sad most of the time and felt unworthy, hated, and ugly. It was one of my most stressful experiences because it affected my life in all aspects; including school attendance, friends, and performance.
Cyberbullying should be considered a serious problem since many teenagers are concerned about their image and thus are especially vulnerable to this problem. Besides, the victims of cyberbullying have indulged in alcohol and other drug related activities to escape from the reality. Obesity is still a struggle for a lot of the American people. On the contrary, some of the students continue to cyberbully students because of their weight. As a result, the victims skip school and tend to fall back on education. The grades of the children are at risk because they do not attend their classes. More importantly, the self-esteem of the victims is lowered, which makes them not interactive with other students. The health of the students being cyber bullied because of their weight is, in effect, deteriorating. The teachers and parents should take cyberbullying seriously because its results can be fatal. Some children who have been victimized consider suicide in order to avoid the embarrassment. The parents should try to understand and help their children.. The teachers must be observant and try to notice any changes in behavior of their students. Those who are vulnerable can seclude themselves from the society because of the alienation.
I would present the effects of cyberbullying on students to the parents through research. Furthermore, I would make sure the parents analyze the performance of their children. It is advisable for parents to spend more time with their children since some of them try to hide their school activities. Teachers should learn the consequences of cyberbullying and the psychological effects it has on the students. They need to pay attention to the class attendance and follow up with students’ parents. Both the teachers and parents must communicate to facilitate proper care for the children. In conclusion, cyberbullying should be avoided and awareness programs should be organized.

By Bryan Morrell, writer at https://essaysprofessors.com/