Speak Up!

With the passing of Pink Shirt Day to address bullying, it got me thinking about the part I was at in my novel. I have travelled through the journey of mental illness with Alex, and it has been a sensitive journey that was severely heightened with some serious bullying that Alex has had to deal with at her new school. Throughout the novel Alex has kept her mental illness quiet because she did not want people to judge her. This is something that unfortunately makes a lot of sense with how insensitive teenagers can be in high school… The guy Alex was crushing on but is now dating, is the only person in the high school that knew of Alex’s mental illness. That was until one of the main female bullies, Celia, in the school who was also crushing on Miles found out… As Alex started getting closer and closer to Miles (they even went on a trip together to visit Mile’s Mom who stays in a mental health facility) the bullying got worse and worse…

The Battle of the Bands –  The high school is hosting a battle of the bands fundraiser, and this is where the bullying is taken to a whole new level, as I was reading this awful situation in the novel I felt so strongly for what Alex was going through… “Excuse me, everyone?” Celia’s voice filled the gym. I jerked awake. The room went silent. “Hi,” she waved from the scorer’s table. “I just wanted to take this moment to remind everyone that all proceeds from today’s concession sales are going to benefit the American Schizophrenia Association.” Celia continues on to say “All of this is in honour of our own paranoid schizophrenic, Alexandra Ridgemont, who transferred to our school after graffitiing the Hillpark school gymnasium.” Celia turned and looked at me, along with everyone else. She waved, smiling. “Hi Alex.”

This sends Alex into a spiral, and leaves her baracading herself in the bathroom until her father comes to help her…. Bullying is something that affects many of us, and is a continuous issue in schools. For my placement I am at a Day Treatment centre for children with Mental Health issues, and anti-bullying is something that is practised every day. Campaigns like Pink Shirt Day, are such a a great way to raise awareness for the bullying that takes place in and out of schools everyday. For Alex living with Schizophrenia, and for a fellow student to exploit that, seeing it as a weakness, and an aspect of a person to bully was emotional to read. I found myself feeling much empathy for Alex, and wanting to be there to give her support. Bullying is something that has taken place for so long, and the awareness continues to take shape, but is the awareness helping? I find myself wondering is bullying getting better, or worse? Do you think there has been a change?