Courtney Stodden Tells Bullying Victims To 'Stay True To Themselves'

Teen bride Courtney Stodden says she's living "like a princess" these days, but it wasn't always that way -- and she has a message for teens.

"You need to realize that it's not [you]," she told TheFABlife this week. "It's the bully who's picking on them, it's their problem."

The 17-year-old Stodden tells TheFABlife that she was once victim to bullying, and before she married 51-year-old actor Doug Hutchison, she had posted a video to YouTube that criticizes cyberbullying.

"Jealousy goes so far to the extent where threaten you. They say, we're going to kill you or you should be killed," she says in the YouTube video. "I'm actually scared for their mental being. It's just sad what jealousy pushes them to say and do."

In an interview with ABC's Nightline in July, Stodden said she was bullied so badly by other girls because of her mature looks that her mother pulled the teen out of school for home schooling.

She continues her message on TheFablife: "There's nothing wrong with the victim. They're perfect, they're beautiful, and they need to stay true to themselves."

Stodden is one of many in the public eye who have spoken out against bullying by discussing their own pasts.

Last week, actress Charlize Theron told People magazine that she struggled to fit in during her school years and was victim to bullying. Theron said she was teased for her "nerdy glasses," haircut and clothes, and her desire to be one of the popular kids made her do "crazy things."

Madonna also spoke out in Harper's Bazaar to tell her story of a "tortured" childhood rife with schoolyard bullying.

"The boys in my school would make fun of me," she told Harper's Baazar. "'Hairy monster.' You know, things like that."

On the other side of the fence, rapper Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson is combating bullying through a new book titled Playground that takes a look at school taunting through the eyes of the bully. He admitted that while he was generally the one doing the teasing in school, having a retrospective look allows him to realize "that was completely wrong," and understand the motivations, he told the TODAY show last month.

Like Jackson, supermodel and TV personality Tyra Banks was what she calls a "mean girl" when she was in school, but later became a bullying victim, and has called on fans to join her and the battle against bullying.

In the wake of the death of 14-year-old Jamey Rodemeyer, Lady Gaga has called for a legal end to bullying, though investigators said last week that no charges would be filed in the case. Rodemeyer took his own life Sept. 18 allegedly as a result of relentless online and in-school peer bullying.

Watch the rest of Stodden's message above.

Comments

[kgeorge345]

03:08 PM on 12/29/2011

Bullying is a serious issue in our schools today, and I commend Courtney for taking a stand and voicing her opinion on the subject. For any teenagers, or parents with bullied children, you might want to take a look at the following link. There are some great techniques, and a great video, as well: http://www.onlineceucredit.com/ceus-online/ttt-bullying/continuing-education.html

[Shawna Wallace]

05:08 AM on 12/08/2011

Any girl who marries this young has some serious issues- she will spend her 20's sorting those out(everyone has to get the first marriage out of the way any way, so hers might as well be to someone who is a better parent than hers obviously are) Wish her luck and hope her husband truly supports her growth and doesn't try to smother her ...What she REALLY needs to do is hire a stylist- her clothes are awful; It looks like like she scored large at a garage sale of Pam Anderson.

[dil123]

06:18 PM on 12/05/2011

.You know, I can believe that Courtney was bullied. Although I don't think that the girls were jealous of her, they may have been intimidated and threatened because they might have thought she would have slept with all their boyfriends (which may or may not have been true) but I don't think they were jealous. I don't think any child deserves to be bullied in any way, as I was absolutely verbally and psychically tortured throughout my school years. As for what Courtney is doing with her life now, well I'm not sure I agree with her mother's decision to let her get married to such an older man, but that's not my family. I really wish Courtney the best in her life and in her "career" whatever it may be, and I hope Doug will let Courtney go to college, I think it would do her good.

[jdshannon03]

02:08 PM on 12/05/2011

I am much more likely to do the exact opposite of what this tramp says. She is probably not the person I want giving advice to my children

[laurenproof12]

03:13 PM on 12/05/2011

Who cares if we like her, her image, whatever. If she's sending a good message should we really shun that?

[jdshannon03]

04:19 PM on 12/05/2011

Good post. After thinking about it. I agree. I jumped the gun on this one!!!!!!!!

[Watching rock grow]

03:39 PM on 12/05/2011

The best way to get protection from bullies is to align yourself with someone older and better off than you. This article explains much about the young Mrs. Hutchison and my respect for her has increased due to understanding not judgmental attitudes, much like the bullies that have haunted our lives. I pray for your children's sake.

[Dede Eagleburger]

12:02 PM on 12/05/2011

You go girl!!! now this is what she should be doing, using her fame to do something good!!!

[ringerang8]

02:18 PM on 12/05/2011

Well DeDe, she took pumpkin picking to a different level, and now every young boy has posters of pumpkins on his wall, so anything is possible.

[Dede Eagleburger]

02:07 AM on 12/06/2011

umm, what kind of pumpkins are we talking about...?

[Drect]

11:15 AM on 12/05/2011

She's odd...really odd actually, but I'm with her on this one.

[thats what you get]

10:52 AM on 12/05/2011

does she have parkinsons?

[JubalTHarshaw]

08:23 AM on 12/05/2011

Nothing modifies the socially unacceptable behavioral interactions of a bully quite like a punch in the nose. Repeat as needed.

[PMJ79]

01:02 PM on 12/05/2011

No, you can't cure bullying with violence. That's just putting gasoline on the fire.

[JubalTHarshaw]

05:36 AM on 12/06/2011

You are certainly entitled to hold an opposing opinion. Most people of my acquaintance who have encountered a bully, personally, in their lives agree that bullies don't respond to reason. There is a world of difference between a hypothetical bully and one who pushes you around and steals you lunch money. They have been reinforced in their world view by getting what they want through force and intimidation. Much like grown up bullies and dictators they view reasoned appeals as a sign of weakness. If the PC notion that you can appeal to the alleged goodness inherent in everyone was true, decades of such interventions would have wiped out the problem; it didn't. Sometimes a punch in the nose extinguishes the fire for the whole neighborhood.

[jdshannon03]

02:10 PM on 12/05/2011

Generally not needed to repeat. Punch a bully once in the nose and they tend to get the message!

[ringerang8]

08:14 AM on 12/05/2011

There is an old saying, that goes something like this......." out of the mouthes of babes, comes the strangest things "...........I think that fit's her.

[JubalTHarshaw]

08:22 AM on 12/05/2011

I think you are channeling Art Linkletter who used to say "kids say the darndest things..." The "out of the mouth of babes" usually refers to wisdom or truth from an unlikely source.

[ringerang8]

12:42 PM on 12/05/2011

Then I just made up a new one just for her. It still fit's her, because you never know what she will say ( or do ) For example, when she went pumpkin picking. Remember that ?. And getting wisdom from her, would be an unlikely source, wouldn't you think ?

[ringerang8]

03:15 AM on 12/05/2011

What did she say ?.... I couldn't hear, her breasts got in the way of my eye's.

[jdshannon03]

02:11 PM on 12/05/2011

Does she have eyes?

[ringerang8]

02:14 PM on 12/05/2011

I don't know, I didn't get that high.

[RondaGP]

01:38 AM on 12/05/2011

I appreciate any media figure speaking out against bullying and/or attempting to speak to those being bullied with a positive message, no matter how dumb you look when doing it, or what the real motive behind it is.

I am not a fan but it seems like she may have some. If her words have offered any comfort to someone being bullied, or if her words has made someone think twice about acting like one, than good.

These messages should come from all types of people, not just those we deem worthy. The more it comes from a wide variety of people, the better the chance of it being heard by everyone. Stuff like this will also keep bullying as a top issue in the media so I don't see it as all bad.

[sigmetsue]

09:39 PM on 12/04/2011

I think the best defense against bullying is to teach kids how to defend themselves against it. They need those skills because there are plenty of bullies in adulthood, too. There are all sorts of things you can do, depending on the situation - turning the tables back on the bully with smart remarks, cruising the school grounds in groups, conspicuously shunning the bully (they hate that), decking them when no one is looking (if you're a guy and bigger than the bully), forming your own group of friends that leave the bully out, sneakily taking back stuff they take from you (it's yours, after all), and sometimes, if what they're doing is illegal - such as sexual harassment - reporting it to the authorities and making sure the bully is dealt with (but be prepared for lots of complaining by the bully, which you then pointedly ignore) - etc., etc. You don't have to be nice to placate a bully, but be sure you don't turn into one yourself. (I don't consider shunning a bully to be a form of bullying.)

[WalkenDead]

09:34 PM on 12/04/2011

Yeah...very classy and original

[summersnoopy29]

08:59 PM on 12/04/2011

she of all people shouldnt be telling children ANYTHING .......wasnt she in a pumpkin patch posing like a hoe around children not too long ago?

[fedup5000]

04:05 PM on 12/04/2011

We are just raising a bunch of coddled children, who can barely breath unless someone is hold their hand. If you are being bullied, stand up for yourself and pop the bully in the nose. The bully when bullied back will step down. Instead of coddling our kids it time we taught them how to stand up for themselves. Once they are grown up no one will be there to hold their hand, and carry them thru life.

[PMJ79]

01:03 PM on 12/05/2011

@fedup5000

Do you realize that promotes more violence in an already ultraviolent society?

[Shyla22]

02:23 PM on 12/05/2011

There's a difference between violence and self-defense. These kids asbolutely need to know how to defend themselves. Give them some confidence and teach them how to deflect, at least, so they don't get into a worse situation before an adult shows up.

[laurenproof12]

02:01 PM on 12/05/2011

I hope you don't have children that you raise with this perspective.

[jdshannon03]

02:14 PM on 12/05/2011

When my son was 10 years old a bully took his Pokemon cards on the school bus. The next day my son asked for them back. When the bully wouldn't do so, my son punched him in the gut. He handed over the cards and learned a valuable lesson.