Can bullying cause PTSD?

While PTSD can result from a single or isolated act of violence, abuse, natural disasters, or life-threatening situations, complex or chronic PTSD can arise after repeated exposure to trauma or abuse that can last months or years. In addition to symptoms associated with PTSD, which include hypervigilance, intrusive memories, nightmares, reliving the trauma, dissociative episodes or flashbacks, heightened physiological response, feeling on guard, memory or concentration problems, avoidance of related thoughts, feelings, or situations that remind one of trauma, and among a range other symptoms, one might also experience symptoms of difficulty controlling emotions, low self-esteem, feelings of guilt or shame, relationship and attachment problems, devaluing self-talk, social withdrawal or isolation, feeling emotionally numb or detached, experiencing health problems, and risky or self-destructive behavior, including self-harming. If you have been experiencing any self-harm and/or suicidal thoughts, reach out for help immediately. You can reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Complex or chronic PTSD can arise from situations and events, including childhood abuse and neglect, intimate partner violence, human trafficking or slavery, workplace bullying, and school bullying. A study undertaken by the University of Illinois in 2016 found that “experiencing bullying was the strongest predictor of PTSD symptoms in college students,” indicating that the impact of childhood bullying often has a long-lasting negative impact on self-perception, emotional regulation, and mental health issues. Another study published in 2015 in Science Direct found that 57% of victims reported scores above the threshold for meeting criteria for a diagnosis of PTSD.

A major aspect of bullying is that verbal, emotional, or physical abuse is often repeated and can be difficult for the victim to escape. Even when the abuse ends or stops, the victim might internalize the abuse by repeating and believing negative statements, adopt negative self-perception or self-concept, and suffer from low self-esteem. Bullying can also impact current and future relationships and friendships, making it difficult for the victim to learn to trust again and further isolation.  Victims might also begin to feel hopeless and powerless over their ability to control their lives or create a meaningful future. Targets of bullying might be perceived as different, less powerful, or having lower status and might be targeted for their appearance, race, socio-economic status, disability or learning disorder, or sexual orientation.  For these reasons, it is important to take bullying seriously and raise awareness about its negative impact on survivors to intervene and stop bullying.