In the wake of the controversy with the Miami Dolphins, Dick Vitale decided to weigh in about his personal experiences on ESPN.com. He came to realize that being teased over a drifting eye, the result of a childhood accident, actually was bullying.

Vitale writes:

As a kid, I wasn’t familiar with the word “bullying.” I always believed it was just teasing at the time, but I was teased big time. When I was 4 or 5 years old, I lost vision in my left eye in an accident with a pencil. I had no control of my left eye, so it would drift. I had no ability to look people directly in the eye.

It drove me wild.

My peers didn’t make it any easier. I was teased over and over, but I was afraid to complain about it to a teacher or coach because I felt I would be labeled as soft or weak. I didn’t want anyone to feel sorry for me. I just wanted the name-calling to stop.

I remember sitting in my room crying while I stared in the mirror trying to cover up the fact that I couldn’t look people in the eye.

Later Vitale writes:

As an adult in the world of television, my problem led to a difficult situation.

One time in the 1980s, I came out of the studio and asked one of the assistants how everything was going. I was told everything was great except for this one fan who kept calling, saying “ESPN should get rid of that one-eyed wacko. His eye is going all over the place.”

I was devastated.

After that conversation, I called up my boss, Steve Anderson, then vice president in charge of production. I told him that maybe I should get out of the TV business. I told him the story and expressed to him that I did not want to embarrass the network. Anderson put me at ease by explaining that I was hired for my basketball knowledge and enthusiasm.

Vitale eventually had surgery to correct the drifting eye issue. Yet the pain still remains vivid. He said he wrote the piece in the hopes it will help others in similar situations.

I’m 74 years old, and I have been so lucky and blessed. There have been some bumps in the road, but I have lived a dream. And today, if you’re being bullied, you do not have to just suck it up.

If you have a problem, tell the authorities. Speak with your parents, teachers or church leaders and talk about the pain. There are a lot of people out there who provide guidance and counseling.

Share your story. Do not be afraid.