As a behavioral health professional working with children and their families regarding developmental, emotional, and trauma issues, I find preventing bullying within schools is crucial to the healthy physical and emotional well-being of our future generation. Bullying is a serious problem that has continued to plague schools, affecting more youth today than ever before.

Youth are struggling with bullying’s harmful consequences, including severe depression, immobilizing anxiety, PTSD, a lack of education due to dropping out of school to avoid bullying and even suicide.

Bullying can also lead to further school violence as desperate youth take matters into their own hands, turning to weapons for protection or to get back at those who repeatedly torture them.

Such consequences can be prevented or significantly reduced if schools begin to realize the major problem bullying really is instead of overlooking it. Schools need to work harder to provide a safe environment for our children. All children deserve to be treated with respect and equality.

They also need to know that when they are being mistreated, their school system will stand behind them, doing everything in its power to eliminate such hurtful behavior.

This is why anti-bullying interventions are so important. Instead of just claiming they have a zero tolerance for bullying, schools should prove this by implementing programs such as Steps to Respect, Bully Beware Productions and Olweus Bullying Prevention Program.

These programs have been proven to be effective at tackling the issue of bullying by appealing to our youth, teaching them the harmful effects of bullying as well as what to do when they see it happening.

If our children can learn this, why not adults in the school system? Parents can help by educating their children about bullying and being more involved by advocating for anti-bullying prevention programs in their own schools.

Kristen Morin of Windham is a graduate student at the University of Southern Maine.