Middle school for me was not the best time for me. In 6th grade and 7th grade, I was bullied and didn’t have the best friends. But the worst grade of my life has to be when I was in 8th grade. After all the bullying and terrible friends, I decided to switch schools. I attended a homeschool program. You went in to school twice a week for lectures and spent the other 3 days of the week working on the lessons and homework assignments at home. Well, with both of my parents working, I had to do all of the homework assignments by myself at home. And being 14, I couldn’t drive, so I spent every day at home by myself. I began to feel very lonely. But that wasn’t even the worst part. The worst part is I had no friends to talk to or hangout with. Since I was “the new kid” at school, no one wanted to be my friend. I mean, who wants to be friends with the new kid when you already have a perfect group of friends right here? I often sat in class and ate lunch by myself every day at school. And if anyone was nice to me, it was because the teachers were watching. And I didn’t have any other friends to fall back on. Winter of my 8th grade year, my old friends from 7th grade ganged up on me and told me they didn’t want to be my friend anymore. So, I didn’t have any friends from my old school OR my new school. And all I wanted was to just be heard.
One day 2nd semester, the principal announced at an assembly that she wanted some volunteers to speak at 8th grade graduation. It was that moment that I knew this was my chance to finally be heard. So, I put together a speech telling everyone, (my classmates, parents/families, teachers, et al.), about what I went through that year and some interesting things about myself; since no one ever talked to me, I never got to share those things with anyone. And I ended it positively by telling everyone what kind of person I wanted be in high school based off this experience. There was not a single dry eye in the audience and several parents came up to me afterwards telling me how sorry they felt for me.
After my speech at graduation, I realized that everyone has their own story to share and sometimes all they want is to just be heard. I created this website specifically for that. So other people can share their story and be heard by others. Nancy Morgan, writing clinician, states, "It's self-disclosure. You share your story; the audience responds; everyone feels a sense of connection, of being understood... [This] process causes cognitive changes in the brain that tell your body. 'relax, you're good.'"
So, share away! This site is for you.
you are *so* brave for sharing your story and making sure your pain has purpose by allowing others to feel less alone.
From reading your story... I think you are BRAVE and STRONG... You went through something really hard, that probably hurt a lot... and now you are choosing to use it to help others. Wow! The world needs more people like you. Thank you for making a differenc!
Im so glad you made this site! I like how you are taking your own experience and making it positive by making this site for us, we could all use more positivity in our lives.
Aw Caitlyn your ending to this story is so impactful! Thanks for keeping everyone else in mind, when reflecting on your past experiences.
Yes, Caitlyn!! You have so much courage and such a powerful voice! What a great leader you are. And what a gift you are giving by connecting others through challenges and vulnerabilities.
Caitlyn I love that you are taking this experience and using it to make a difference! I also think it is so important for people to be heard, and this is a wonderful idea to create a forum for sharing stories and encouragement. Way to go!
Thanks for sharing this Caitlyn and for creating a place for people to tell their story. Life can be hard and it's so nice to know that we're not alone.