Let’s Stop Bullying

I will never forget an experience I had when I was just seven years old. I was walking home from school with my friend. Another boy usually walked home the same way as us, but not with us. One day he started teasing me and my friend about something, I don’t remember what. What I do remember vividly is him saying to my friend, “Move out of the way so I can beat Rachael up!”. He sounded mean and serious about this idea… My friend defended me and told him to back off, but he kept threatening.

After a minute I took of running as fast as I could. The boy, who was a few years older than me and much bigger, started chasing me. I still remember my friend yelling, “Run Rachael, RUN!!!”. The moment I made it in the front door of my house, panting and out of breath, I threw myself on the floor bawling. I had never been so scared before. Fortunately my mom talked to the the school principal, who stopped the boy from bullying me further, but another girl who walked home with us wasn’t so lucky.

Often as we walked home he would make fun of a certain girl because of her weight. He would call her hurtful names, comments like the ones he directed at her can destroy self esteem. No child should have to endure this type of heartless treatment. October is National Bullying Prevention month. So I thought I’d share one way that we all can help prevent bullying this month by supporting the Avène anti-bullying movement.

Avène reached out to me to ask if I would help share their Hope campaign, to help prevent bullying. I immediately was excited to get on board and share their plan to help stop bullying with you. Personally I am not a fan of bullying (who is????), but I did not expect to be so moved by what Avène is doing to help prevent it. A little background – Avène has been in the skin care space for over 270 years. At the heart of their brand is Avène Thermal Spring Water. This spring water is clinically shown by over 150 studies to soothe, soften and calm the skin. It is trusted and recommended by dermatologists worldwide.

Avène has been able to achieve life altering results for people who suffer from Atopic Dermatitis (a severe form of eczema). Carissa Chilson also suffers from this. She was relentlessly bullied due to her condition. I can’t even imagine how I would feel if my child was bullied the way she was… You can watch the touching and heartbreaking story of her life here. As painful as it is for me to imagine my child in physical pain like this eczema causes – it is worse to think of them being bullied with words. Especially if the bullying was a result of a disease with no cure… It is tragic that any child should endure this. Carissa was treated at the Avène Hydrotherapy Center in the southwest of France where she’s made immense progress.

In honor of Carissa, Avène will be donating 100% of the proceeds from this kit to KIND Campaign (scroll down to “purchase with a purpose” on AveneUSA.com/HOPE to find the kit). If you are able to purchase one of these kits, not only will you be getting a box of world class skin care products, you will also be making a difference in the lives of people who have been bullied.  Visit AveneUSA.com/HOPE to learn more about this cause and Carissa’s story.

Have you, or someone you love, ever been bullied? If you feel comfortable, share your experience in the comments.

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