Recently on Twitter, a man shares his scary experience where a woman has been stalking him for two years! How scary is that? It must be quite shocking to hear that a woman stalks a man. Nevertheless, this can happen to anybody, regardless the gender.
According to MindHelp, stalking is a behaviour that involves persistence and unwanted surveillance. Aside from that, this behaviour also includes wanting attention, and some can lead to harassment towards a specific person.
The action of stalking is not normal, and should be stopped! The victims of this action can suffer from the things that stalkers do such as:
Stalking Behaviours
1) Repeatedly calling or texting
2) Showing up uninvited
3) Following or spying
4) Leaving strange and unwanted gifts
5) Waiting for the victims
6) Engaging in acts to intimidate or threaten
As victims of stalkers, they have no control over the stalkers except to tell them to stop or block them from reaching them. However, stalkers being stalkers, they will find a way to do anything to get in touch with the victims.
Some might say, “It’s just a stalker. He/she just adores you.” Well, that is not the case. The strange behaviour of stalking can impact the victims’ lives:
Impacts of stalking on victims
1) Victims may feel helpless
- They live in constant fear every day, worrying about what will come next and when the stalking will end.
2) Victims can suffer from anxiety, stress, low mood, and depression
- In some cases, victims blame themselves for the stalker’s action.
3) Impact on physical health
- Disturbed sleep, fatigue, stomach problems, migraines, headaches, and poor concentration.
4) Attempt to harm themselves
- Adopt unhealthy lifestyles like smoking (increasing cigarette use), drinking alcohol, taking medications without a prescription, and having suicidal thoughts.
Other impacts of stalking on victims are as follow:
Picture: MindHelp
Sources: MindHelp, Action Against Stalking
