The answer to bullying.

You can’t simultaneously tell people “not to feed the trolls” and then tell them to “stand up to bullying.” You can’t do both. You either let them get to you and you fight back, igniting them further, or you develop a tough skin, don’t care what they say, and move on with your life.

Killing yourself because someone doesn’t like you is dumb. Look, in the adult world you’ll meet LOTS of people who don’t like you. That’s life. On the internet, it’s even moreso.. but you have to remember.. most of these people insulting you don’t even know you. They don’t care. In many cases, they don’t even truly dislike you — they just insult you to look cool, to gain popularity, or just because they like seeing someone in pain.

The trick isn’t to stop people from bullying. That’s never going to happen. Some people are just going to be douchebags and there’s nothing we can do about it.

.. but if somebody calling you names is making you hurt so bad you want to die because of it, find someone to talk to. A parent, a teacher, a friend, a pastor, a neighbor.. somebody.

And if you truly think you have nobody, if you hide on Tumblr because you have nobody in your real world that you can trust, if you honestly cannot think of a single person that could possibly care if you live or die…

.. then come to me. Private message, ask box, whatever. If it’s a life or death emergency right this second you should call emergency services or a a suicide hotline (1-800-273-8255 in the United States).. but if you can make it through at least the next 24 hours on your own and just need help getting through the rest of the week.. semester.. month.. whatever… then talk to me, and I will help you.

And if you’re sitting there thinking “Well, she couldn’t possibly mean me.. she doesn’t even know me.” .. know that you’re partially right. I may not know your name, age, gender, religion, nationality .. but I know your pain, because I have been there.. and it took me almost 30 years to pull out of it. I don’t want you to suffer for 30 years, and I don’t want you to kill yourself because you’ve given up, either.

I’m not a professional psychologist. I’m not a therapist. I’m just a girl who has been there and is willing to be a friend to others who still are.