Preventing Offline and Online Bullying with Martial Arts
By:
Bruce McCorry's Martial Arts
220 Newbury St
Peabody MA 01960
The past few years have seen a tremendous growth in the awareness regarding bullying and cyberbullying. However, this has not helped much in fighting the actual instances of bullying among children, as our schools and classrooms continue to report instances of kids being bullied. However, there is an immediate need to come up with a real solution to this problem, as the psychological impact of the issue has grown manifold since the emergence of largely unmonitored cyberspaces. This article explores how martial arts can offer a potential solution to the menace of bullying, and why martial arts needs to be taught to school-going children in large numbers so that bullying can be wiped out.
Martial Arts to Fight Bullying: The Many Ways to One Solution
Martial art lessons can empower kids in three respects, thus contributing to the larger fight against bullying:
- Firstly, martial arts can help victims of bullying to be more confident, courageous and assertive, thus reducing the chances of them being victimized. Weakness and timidity often invites bullying, and martial art lessons can offer a real remedy to this. There is no better self-defense than martial arts, as it trains the learner’s body, mind and spirit to protect itself in the face of an emergency. Martial art learners also tend to be stronger, energetic and alert, thus making them unlikely victims of bullying.
- Secondly, martial arts help bullies as well. Bullies don’t usually gain the sympathy that victims gain, but the truth is that bullies too need help. It is often the curable psychological tendencies such as narcissism and violence that turns kids into bullies. Dysfunctional families, instances of child abuse in the past, childhood trauma and so on can also lead to bullying tendencies. Martial arts help bullies to burn off the excess energy and develop a positive attitude to life and sympathy toward others.
- Thirdly, martial arts can make kids brave enough to stand up for other kids. It makes them braver, stronger and fearless. Kids who are backed up by the support of a solid self-defense like martial arts are not cowed down by bullies. The presence of strong kids who oppose bullying in a class will help to bring down instances of bullying.
- Finally, learning martial arts will help children and even adults to heal if they have been victims of bullying in the past and if they carry the psychological burden of that past. This ability of martial arts is particularly relevant in an age where bullying has found new avenues in the cyberspaces, leaving remnants of abuse that can never really be erased, and have consequences that are more wide-reaching and long-lasting. Healing from cyberbullying is probably harder, and martial arts help such children to move on with their lives and leave the past behind.
Say No to Bullying with Martial Arts at Bruce McCorry’s Academy
Bruce McCorry’s Academy (Peabody, MA) is one of the topmost martial art schools in the region, open to adults and kids. The academy offers professional lessons in martial arts, sensitive to all needs of children, prepping them to fight against bullying in their lives. Caring instructors and a structured syllabus equip them in facing all challenges brought about by life, including bullying. Choose martial arts for your child and say yes to a future without bullying.
