I went to a Catholic school as a kid. K - 8th Grade. It was co-ed and I had a pretty good spot on the social ladder. I was popular, started for the basketball team (only sport at the school) and always had girlfriends. Still, I felt the effects of bullying.
One of my "friends" was a larger kid who I had grown up with... He had 3 older brothers who would always beat him up. His father was a pretty successful business man, but in retrospect it is very clear that he was having an affair. He was never in town and when he was, my friend seemed to hate it. His mom ended up having an affair with a coach at the school. Bad situation.
Anyway, around 3rd or 4th grade, he started acting like an ass at times. It was like he wanted to take something out on someone, so he chose me (his best friend). I am a pretty nice guy, not really one to take abuse, but this was my friend. I started spending less time with him, and things started getting worse. He felt threatened, so he would try to cut me down in front of other kids. At the same time, he would apologize later and we would be friends again. He acted like it was all in good fun. This is a hard thing for a 3rd grader to figure out. He was good at basketball and handsome, so people generally wanted to be his friend. Also, at a small Catholic school, it wasn't like I could avoid him.
Our teachers were all nuns, so they couldn't have been worse on the emotional health side. As long as we weren't physically fighting, they left us alone. He never scared me physically; I didn't think he was going to hurt me.
This went on for the next four years. It is easy to say that I should've talked to someone or stopped being his friend, but it isn't that easy. I think my parents knew that his home life was a wreck, so they would invite him over a lot. He was always nice when he came over. It was when we were in a group setting that he would be a jerk, which is the worst place for that kind of thing to happen. I remember one time we found a Playboy in the woods when we were riding bikes. This was probably 5th grade or something. The next week in school, he told people that I took it home to "jerk off." I am being 100% serious when I tell you that I had no idea what jerking off was. I didn't know about masturbation at that point. That is how I found out what that meant. That was the kind of crap he would pull.
It wasn't until about halfway through 8th grade that I finally told him to fvck off and literally never spoke with him again. We went to different high schools and I basically avoided him. He made some stupid decisions in high school but ended up okay, I think. I heard that he has a kid and lives in another state.
I honestly think his bullying messed my confidence up on a deep level. I have been successful, but I think it is because I have a bit of a Napoleon complex thing as a result of his abuse (I am just over 6 feet tall, so I don't think it is actually related to height). I have to be the best at things, or at least better than most people. I was a college athlete, I have a beautiful family and I am what most would consider wealthy as a result of a good job.
That being said, I still dislike the guy and it still bothers me. I am in my mid thirties. I can only imagine how much someone might suffer if they were truly bullied and made to feel like a nothing. I had basically everything going for me and I still have some effects from what a lot of people probably wouldn't even consider bullying.
It is easy to call someone weak or tell them to suck it up, but when you are young it is very hurtful and confusing. This is serious emotional stuff that can latch on and kick your ass for years after it stops.