Shanina Shaik speaks out about being bullied at school: 'I used to come home from school and cry every day'

SITTING on the edge of the group of popular girls in Year 8, Shanina Shaik wondered why she was the only one not invited to the party.

SITTING on the edge of the group of popular girls in Year 8, Shanina Shaik wondered why she was the only one not invited to the party.

"It's because you are black and not good enough," one told her ,straight to her face.

"I was devastated. I felt like crying, which was embarrassing. I thought these were my friends and no-one stood up for me," she said.

Now 22, Shaik lives in New York and is a Victoria's Secret model who lives an exciting life - flying to catwalk shows in Paris, Milan and London.

But at 14, as her jealous "friends" turned on her because of her first forays into modelling, she lost her confidence and self-esteem,'' she told The Daily Telegraph.

"I would come home from school and cry every day. Eventually I stopped going to school and my grades fell.

"I felt I did not have anyone to speak to about it."

The remorseless name calling and exclusion went on for months, getting worse as more children joined in.

"I finally got the strength to talk about it,' Shaik said.

"I was tired of it and I told my mum. She went to the school and told the teachers and things started to change."

Shanina Shaik on the catwalk for Victoria's Secret. Picture: Supplied

Shaik has spoken out to throw her support behind the NRL and Daily Telegraph's Tackle Bullying campaign, which is giving children the skills to deal with bullying.

"Kids think it is not going to go away, that people think you are a loser because you are being bullied," said Shaik.

"But it does end. I'm glad I experienced bullying because it has made me a lot stronger and helped me to work a lot harder in my job."

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She has found most of the models she works with have similar stories of bullying from their childhoods.

"Bullies tend to pick on the people who stand out,'' Shaik said.

What you eventually realise is that these are the same people who go on to do amazing things with their lives."

Models Shanina Shaik and Sara Sampaio. Picture: Instagram

The Tackle Bullying campaign tells children not to ignore bullying.

It advises them to stand strong, stay calm, respond confidently, walk away and report it. And it tells children to not be a bystander but to stand up for a friend.

Model Shanina Shaik photographed at Prince Alfred Park, Surry Hills. Picture: Attila Szilvasi.

For Shaik, the breakthrough came when she reported the bullying.

"If you are being bullied it is important to know that you are not any less of a person for telling a parent, friend or teacher about it.

"That's the most important thing you can do."

The Daily Telegraph has launched a 'Tackle Bullying' campaign.