TPP 353: Ginger Whitson on Bullying — What it Looks Like, How to Handle It, and How to Protect Our Kids from Being Targets

I get a lot of requests for different topics to cover on this show, and bullying is a theme that has come up multiple times. And understandably, since we know that children and teens with learning disabilities, ADHD, autism, are much more likely to experience bullying and social rejection. And we know that being on the receiving end of bullying can be traumatic and have long-lasting negative impacts.

So I reached out to Ginger Whitson, an author, mental health professional, educator, and expert educator on bullying, crisis intervention, and child and adolescent emotional and behavioral health and invited her to join me on the show. Because the concept of bullying evokes such strong feelings and likely a lot of misunderstanding about what even qualifies as bullying, that’s where I asked Ginger to start — what exactly IS bullying? And does the bullying today’s kids and teens experience look and feel different from back when we were in school? I mean, with the addition of technology, it just feels like a completely different ball game. I also asked Ginger to guide us on how we should best respond if our child tells us they’re being bullied, if there are ways we can “bully proof” our kids, and how we can preemptively prepare them so they feel they have a plan for dealing with negative behavior from other kids.

In addition to her important work with children and her books, including Friendship & Other Weapons: Group Activities to Help Young Girls Aged 5-11 to Cope with Bullying and The 8 Keys to End Bullying Activity Program Workbook, Ginger, whose work can be found under the name Signe Whitson, is also the C.O.O. of the Life Space Crisis Intervention (LSCI) Institute, an international training program that helps adults turn problem situations into learning opportunities for young people who exhibit challenging behaviors.

About Signe Whitson (Ginger)

Signe Whitson (Ginger) is an author, educator, and mental health professional with 25 years of experience working with children, adolescents, and families. She is also the C.O.O. of the Life Space Crisis Intervention (LSCI) Institute, an international training program that helps adults turn problem situations into learning opportunities for young people who exhibit challenging behaviors.

Things you'll learn:

• What bullying looks like today, taking into consideration the technology our kids use and other changes society has gone through in past decades
• A definition of bullying and what’s at stake for a child experiencing bullying
• Essential strategies parents should follow if their child has been or is being bullied
• Characteristics or traits that make kids more likely to be bullied
• How to talk with kids who have a heightened sense of rejection about bullying and social rejection
• Ways to bully-proof our kids and resources we can share with them
• How we can all contribute to raising more empathetic kids

Resources mentioned:

• Signe Whitson’s website
• 8 Keys to End Bullying on Facebook
• 8 Keys to End Bullying: Strategies for Parents & Schools by Signe Whitson
• The 8 Keys to End Bullying Activity Book for Kids & Tweens: Worksheets, Quizzes, Games, & Skills for Putting the Keys Into Action by Signe Whitson
• How to Be Angry: Strategies to Help Kids Express Anger Constructively by Signe Whitson
• Odd Girl Out, Revised and Updated: The Hidden Culture of Aggression in Girls by Rachel Simmons
• Rosalind Wiseman
• Queen Bees and Wannabes, 3rd Edition: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boys, and the New Realities of Girl World by Rosalind Wiseman
• Dr. Robyn Silverman Explains How to Talk to Kids About Anything (Tilt Parenting podcast)

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