"I think shunning is EXACTLY like bullying! Shunning means you TARGET an individual. Shunning is hurtful. It is ACTIVE because you choose behaviour that means you ignore another, purposely causing them pain.
Thats like saying neglecting a child isnt abuse. Of course it is!..."
EXCELLENT point, Pam's Girl!!!
Maybe you should go straighten out that absolute imbecile of a "professional" that Still Thinking had to deal with...
It says absolutely nothing for that cretin's "credentials", that she/he was ALSO taken in by a little "popular" girl's behavior... And I'd bet my BOTTOM dollar that the "professional" was a social ugly duckling who 'followed' the popular girls, when he/she was young!
I was painfully shunned by nearly all of my classmates when I was in school, too - partially due to the cult's strictures; partially because I was already furious at the world, and certainly in no mood to 'make nice'...
I was never a follower - of course, "followers" are the ONLY creatures that a "popular" girl will tolerate. Issue a contradictory opinion just ONCE, and such a 'queen bee' will shun you right out of social existence.
Which may be what happened to your daughter, Still Thinking. Your little girl is probably very smart, and that frequently threatens such 'queen bees' - they cannot control such people as easily, so they eliminate the problem by ostracizing them.
Zid