“They will be deleted. They will be blocked.”

Shaynna Blaze on The Block

Shaynna Blaze has been a judge on The Block for over a decade, and like many in the spotlight, she knows that notoriety often brings negativity—particularly in the form of online vitriol.

However, with the rise in negative comments that have been directed her way recently, she’s taken to Instagram to call out the trolls.

Shaynna started her video by thanking her followers who share positive messages, before tackling the online hate.

“The other thing is addressing the hateful comments. And I’m not talking negativity, I’m talking really appalling, disgusting comments. And few people have reached out and asked me, ‘How do I cope with this?’” She began.

“It’s not about coping, it’s about how it’s addressed. So, how I see it is that these comments are coming from somebody’s mind and heart. So it starts here, it comes from here, it goes all the way down their arms onto their keyboard, on their phone, their laptop, wherever, and it sits on their screen. They have to see that comment before they push send.”

Shaynna added that she deals with the negativity by keeping a thick skin and refusing to let other people’s opinions hold any weight.

“That is coming from them, and for me, that sits on their screen, it doesn’t come back to me. So whatever these comments are… it doesn’t affect me. I don’t take it on, and I refuse to, and they will be deleted. They will be blocked. I don’t get to it straight away, because I’m living my best life, and I get onto social media when I can; I don’t make it my job.”

Shaynna Blaze thanks her followers who share positive comments

Shaynna went on to say that she recognises that the majority of comments she receives are positive, and said she appreciates that support.

“I just wanted to let you know that I am beyond grateful for the people that follow me, that are positive, that like everything, that are enjoying what I’m doing.

“And, for those that aren’t enjoying it, I hope you move on, and I hope the comments that you’re making, you’re able to reflect on how that’s affecting you, because it’s not affecting me. So I just wanted to let you know that this is a world where there’s a lot of great people, and unfortunately, the minority is slipping through, making it look like the majority.”

Shaynna’s message is a timely reminder that cruel comments land on real people.