He began to walk downstream and all he heard in his conscious mind was a voice of fear telling him that he would never be able to cross the river and that he was crazy and living in a fantasy world thinking treasure lay in a box waiting for him. He attempted to tell the voice to quiet down, however the loudness of these thoughts echoed through the path he continued to walk down.

The noise began to get too much for him and he decided to rest amongst a beautiful willow tree, laying against the trunk for support. He fell asleep and while sleeping had a magical dream that he was as light as a feather and had the ability to beat all that was thrown into his path that day. The boy woke up and he continued to venture down to calmer part of the river and he knew in his heart that this was where he needed to be in order to make it across.

As he got closer, he stood frozen in his tracks as a Grizzly bear standing seven feet tall was blocking his movement forward. The bear moved forward with its paws open and let out a menacing grunt. The boy stepped back a few steps, thoughts rushed through his head. He felt he would never make it to the other side. He questioned the yearning within his heart and a waterfall of negative analysis overwhelmed his mind. He thought he was going to die and he was ready to give up, when an outstretched eagle flew overhead and dropped a feather. With the speed of a lighting bolt, the dream that he had earlier rushed through his being, the bear was startled by the eagle above and turned around and walked away.

The boy got to the calmer part of the river and knew he had to cross at this point. He mustered up all his strength, stepped forward four steps after being put back three steps by the bear and entered the water. Suddenly a rush of water overwhelmed the boy and he knew he was going under. The feeling of not being able to breathe constricted his movements and he was just about to give up when a few curious beavers built him a bridge made of wood they had collected and gently pushed him through the water until he was able to grab a branch and pull himself to safety.

The boy lay on the bridge in amazement and disbelief that this day had brought him so many lows, yet he had made it to the other side of the river. He was dehydrated and exhausted when he noticed in front of him a gorgeous young female giving his some water and telling him that all would be fine.

The boy knew this was why he had to cross the river, the yearning was not the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, the treasure was the girl that attended to him and he realized this was his destiny.

The boy was faced with so many obstacles, he could have given up, yet deep in his unconscious there was a driving force pushing him forward. The faith of his trust within allowed him to continue this journey and he was rewarded with a wonderful life ahead.

This story is about the clients that come to Sanlyn Wellness. They feel they have hit the dark, the world is not their friend and they need to find the light. Trust is the key element to growth, it allows the voice of self doubt to disappate and the inner faith within you to recharge.

Sanlyn Wellness can work with you to be like the boy, overcome all your obstacles and get you into that space where life feels more clear and comfortable to you. Email or call to book an appointment and we will guide you to a happier space.

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The final two written black and white cards of a fifteen year old British Columbia teenager shortly before she took her own life. , Sanlyn Wellness wishes to express condolences to her family and pray that her soul transitions peacefully. This young lady brought to the forefront through her ten minute YouTube video a chilling reminder that bullying is not an isolated incident and more prevalent than we as society ever imagined it to be.

As the author of this article, the owner and counselor/therapist of Sanlyn Wellness Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, it has been my job over a number of years to help many different individuals from all walks of life to learn and cope with traumatic experiences and relationship issues. One such area that has been quite a focal point with clients is bullying at one time or another in their lives. The effects of watching an adult reliving this verbal, emotional or online abuse in my office is heart wrenching.

I have also been the victim of torment and being bullied when I was the same age as Amanda. My experience was nowhere close to what this young female endured, however one episode I remember was painful and definitely left a scar in my psyche. I had just moved to Canada from South Africa and I was dealing with the stress of immigration and wanting to somehow fit into a society and culture that was foreign to me. I was placed into high school almost two months into the semester. Most of my peers had integrated and formed cliques of friends. To compound this I was teased for my accent which I believe to this day is wonderful. I was made fun of because I wore South African clothing that was a different style. My story that I am going to share happened in an English class.

"I remember crying and just feeling like I hated Canada, felt low and wondered why people could be so cruel."

The teacher was writing on the blackboard and had her back to the classroom. I remember some popular cool kids in the class turning to me and in a very quiet voice saying stand up and go to the clock on the wall and move it forward fifteen minutes so we can get out of class early. Having very few solid good friends at this time, I just wanted to fit in, so I got up and began to change the clock. As I was in the process of doing that the very same kids started yelling out to the teacher to look. I froze in my footsteps, embarrassment, fear, anger, sadness and isolation ran through my mind. I was made to explain myself after the class and did not get into trouble because of my situation of being new to the school. I remember crying and just feeling like I hated Canada, felt low and wondered why people could be so cruel.

Bullying causes a number of reactions as you can see from mine and Amanda’s story. Wanting to be alone, low self esteem, addictions, panic attacks, headaches, stomach pains, depression, insomnia and anger are some of the more common effects of continuous or isolated bullying, whether it is verbal, physical, social or online. I too, like Amanda experienced a slew of feelings both physical and emotional. What helped guide me through the stress and incidents at that time was a constant reminder to myself that I was not going to allow the power to be given over to teenagers that were just as insecure as me at the time. I worked really hard at finding people that honoured me for who I was and that had similar interests and made some very close friends that I still to this day have.

Unfortunately Amanda’s pain was too much, her anguish to hard to swallow. This article is written in her memory to a teenage girl I never met, yet shared a common bond. Each and every time I work with bullying in my practice going forward, Amanda your story is going to be told. If you have been bullied, call or email Sanlyn Wellness and we can help.

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