by Be care online when using your real name. Cyberstalking or cyberbullying is the use of internet or electronic media to defame, insult, humiliate or harass someone. Experiencing cyberbullying online can have a enormous drain on your mental health offline, but there is hope. Learn about the tactics of Cyberbullies and how to recovery from them.
Common Tactics of Cyberbullies
- Spreading lies about someone online.
- Sharing private photos or videos of someone without their consent.
- Repeatedly messaging someone with hurtful comments.
- Posting edited videos or photos to embarrass the other people.
What Should You Do?
When you need cyberstalking help, begin with the following steps:
- Relax, take a deep breath and focus on what you can control. It is common, it just requires an internet connection, and you can also be a victim of it. You cannot control what other people do, but you can regulate your emotions with breath work.
- Don’t cyberbully back. People who cyberbully, do it to provoke a reaction, don’t give them anything to work with.
- Inform your parents, teachers or any other person you can trust. Rely on your support network, surround yourself with people who care about you
- Block that person
- You can temporarily deactivate your account or adjust your privacy settings to prevent more unwanted messages
- Report the cyberbully on the website where it is happening. Inform your support network about it and ask them to report it too. Multiple reports get better results
Cyberbullying Recovery
Prolonged online abuse can have a negative affect on your mental health. Applying the next steps should help you recover.
- Persistence: Commit to yourself that you don’t want to be under the influence of this particular phase. Take it one day at a time.
- Focus: Focus on productive activities. Join the gym. Go for a walk.
- Let it go: You cannot control the way others behave. But you can control the way you respond to them.
- Spend more time offline: Take a break from social media or the internet.
Credits
Photo by Mikayla Mallek
