HAMPTON ROADS, Va. (WAVY) — Bullying can have an indelible and detrimental impact on children’s mental health that can carry on into adulthood if left unchecked, according to a local psychologist.

Cornerstone Therapeutic Services psychologist Dr. Krystal Vaughn said anyone can be a target, but some groups are picked on more than others, like those who fall outside the societal norms of what’s considered acceptable. This could includes minorities, LGBTQ, special needs, and those with socioeconomic differences.

During National Bullying Prevention Month, founded in 2006 by PACER’s National Bullying Prevention Center and aimed to raise awareness on the long-term impact bullying can have on mental health.

It’s a round-the-clock problem many school children are faced with across the country, with one out of every five students in the U.S. having been bullied, according to the National Center of Education Statistics.

Vaughan said parents should provide a safe space for their children to talk and teach them how to confidently advocate for themselves when bullying occurs.

“So if they have those tools and they know who they are and have a positive sense of self, then that will give them the power to say, ‘Hey, look, I don’t have to respond to this in a negative manner because I’m more secure in who I am,'” she said.

Research shows the highest percentage of students experience bullying in school classrooms, hallways and stairwells. While others are badgered off campus and online through cyberbullying. Victims are also two to nine times more likely to consider suicide over non-victims, according to a Yale University study.

Vaughan pointed out that the effects of bullying linger far beyond childhood and soon follow many into adulthood, altering how people see themselves.

“It leads to anxiety, it leads to depression, it leads to emotional dysregulation,” Vaughan said. “And if we allow those intrusive thoughts to build, that’s when we get those suicide ideations, homicidal ideations. So it builds very, very quickly.”

She also emphasized that those who inflict the unwanted behavior often come from broken homes and suffer with low self-esteem. So remember to be kind, as there are people suffering on both sides.