A former bully who was nasty to other women for 18 years said being mean to other people - including her friends and colleagues - 'made her feel good'.
Cally Stewart, 35, has since changed her ways and is now helping other people to transform themselves.
The mum-of-two admitted she turned into a 'mean girl' after she was bullied herself and went on to spend a staggering 18 years putting people down, making fun of other people's appearances, clothes and lives.
Cally even made up rumours about colleagues sleeping with men to advance their career.
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The former bully, from Hinckley, Leicestershire, said: “I used to be an absolute b***h. I was horrible about others to give me a boost of power.
“I laughed about what other girls or colleagues were wearing and say awful things like ‘she’s too fat for that.’
“My husband thought I was a complete psycho."
After turning 30, Cally realised something had to change and that her behaviour was motivated by feeling powerless and hating herself.
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She booked herself onto a spiritual retreat, and instead of self loathing, learnt to love herself and stop being a bully.
Working with other former bullies like herself, Cally launched a new business in October 2019 that would help others with personal development.
She said: “I recognise now how awful it is but at the time it made me feel good. It was a coping mechanism.
“But after 18 years of being a bully I realised this and made a change in my behaviour.
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“Now I wake up loving life.
“My husband, Nigel, 51, jokes that he was married to one woman for 14 years and another for five.
“Although I’m apologetic for the impact my behaviour had on others I wouldn’t change it.
“It served me to be a bully at the time.”
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Cally was bullied herself at school before she turned into the school bully.
“People used to call me ‘Smelly Kelly’ because it rhymed better than using my real name," she said.
“I had a council house hand me downs so I was an easy target.
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“But then I realised my bullies had nothing if I wasn’t scared. It was a liberating feeling.
“I became a bully and I was awful in classes.
“I made teachers' classes hell.
“I remember one called me out once and she told me ‘life’s going to be difficult for you if you carry on like this'.
“I turned around and said 'life’s a b***h and so are you'.”
Cally left school with no qualifications and worked in a coffee shop for few years.
The mum worked hard to advance her career, but the bullying didn't stop.
“We had a group chat with some colleagues in it and I’d be constantly saying horrible things in it," she said.
“I was nasty about people in a position I wanted to be in.
“I’d say that women were sleeping with the men in the office to get there and awful things about how they were dressing.
“I b*****d and bullied but I worked so hard to achieve what I wanted to in life."
The retreat in September 2019 did wonders for Cally, with the mum now describing herself as a completely different person.
She said: "I went from hating myself and saying the nastiest things about others to changing that behaviour and loving everything.
"I’m a completely different person now."
Featured Image Credit: SWNS