Anti-Bullying: Be safe and happy

Looking after your mental health makes you more resilient. A really important part of being resilient to bullying is making sure you look after your mental health. 

Staying safe is about making sure that you feel OK, and not too stressed.

Take action: Find out more about how to support your mental wellbeing.

Ways to help yourself:

Young people who have worked on this website have contributed their ideas on what helps their mental wellbeing when they are stressed at school.

Finding ways to relax and de-stress

If you are having problems, it is important that you solve them But it is also important to look after yourself. You need to do things that you enjoy and make sure that you carry on doing the things that make you feel happy.

Ways to relieve stress and tension:

Some people find taking part in sports or martial arts is very helpful, other people prefer listening to or making music, or creating artworks. 

Play games to let off steam. Exercise, do sports, jump up and down, sing loudly, laugh, or shout. 

Things that can help you relax and be happy:

Taking a walk, looking at nature or taking some time out to daydream can all help you get happier. If you're not sure what makes you happy, trying making a list. Here are some things to get you started:

Read a book, watch a film, look at pictures, look at videos, play a game. Draw a picture, write things down, take a photo, make some music. Stroke and fuss your pets.

Stop feeling afraid by:

Being afraid is sensible if you are in serious danger. But it can also become a habit that makes you scared to do things. Many young people find that they need to do things that challenge them:

Doing adventurous things like high ropes and climbing. Staying in places where you feel safe and happy, like your garden or home, going to groups that offer interesting activities and a more structured environment, like cadets. Looking after other people, helping out family members and caring for pets, are all things that you can do to help you feel brave.

Staying safe when you're out and about

There are things you can do which will make you feel safer and they will also make you seem less vulnerable to other people. Usually, three simple rules are enough:

Be confident and sensible. Stick with your friends. Don't get into fights.

If these things don’t work – and sometimes they might not – it’s important to remember that it’s not your fault if someone bullies or attacks you. Safety is everyone's responsibility. We all need to work together to keep the peace.

Stay safe at school, at work and in clubs

If you're at school, work or at an organised club there should be an anti-bullying policy and practice in place. This means that the people in charge will have rules about bullying. These might include:

• Having rules everyone knows about
• Doing exercises or training about bullying
• Training to help you sort out arguments and keep the peace.

If you suffer bullying at school, work, or at an organised club, you should always tell whoever is in charge. This helps everyone stay safe.

Crucial: If you’re worried about bullying you can tell someone you trust or phone Childline on 0800 1111.