Mom of TikTok's Bella Brave Responds to Vicious Online Bullying of Daughter: 'Ignite a Change' (Exclusive)

Kyla Thomson's 10-year-old lives with Hirschsprung’s disease and severe combined immunodeficiency, but that's not stopped her from going viral

• 10-year-old Bella Thomson — known as "Bella Brave" on TikTok — and her mom, Kyla, faced online bullies in response to their recent spin on a viral trend

• Other well-known creators defended Bella, who was born with Hirschsprung’s disease and severe combined immunodeficiency

• Kyla spoke to PEOPLE about how she and her daughter handle mean-spirited comments and how they hope Bella's story will give others some perspective

Viral sensation Bella Thomson isn't letting any online critics have a say in what she posts on social media, but she and her mom hope their content helps some negative minds think twice.

Kyla Thomson’s 10-year-old daughter, who is known to their 7 million TikTok followers as "Bella Brave," has captured hearts online with her high spirits and confidence despite her multiple critical medical conditions. The mother-daughter duo inspire viewers around the world with their fun-filled videos and advocacy for children's health.

Their widespread content has also reached sides of the internet with less than positive words to share. Recently, the Thomsons faced online bullying when they put their own spin on a viral trend that featured Kyla lifting a horizontal Bella up towards the camera.

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After one person made a video acting startled by the preteen's appearance in the frame, well-known TikTokers like Jen Hamilton and “Mama Tot” Ophelia Nichols were quick to defend Bella, who lives with Hirschsprung’s disease and severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID).

Kyla tells PEOPLE that she usually isn't in a rush to engage with mean-spirited activity online, but this instance “just seemed to be larger than any other issues we've dealt with before.”

“I never really want to respond because I don't want to give them the credit they're looking for,” she says of online bullies. "They're just hiding behind a keyboard in the comments section thinking they're going to get somewhere, when really they're just voluntarily making themselves look really bad."

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Kyla continues, “We haven't had this happen very often, but when something goes viral, it's in your face. In the past, I've turned comments off, but this time I decided not to.”

Hoping that she may be able to broaden some narrow-minded thinking, the Canada-based mom responded to a few of the “nasty things” people replied.

She realized that many offenders may not know that Bella — whose dwarfism causes her to weigh less than 30 pounds — has spent more than 1,000 days of her life in the hospital. She's undergone dozens of surgeries and survived multiple septic shock infections. Last year, Bella received a life-saving bowel transplant.

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Kyla understands that if people don't know Bella's story, they may not understand all that their family had been through.

“I'm always wanting to advocate for pediatric organ donations, medical families and supporting those families … I'm hoping to ignite a change online instead of just shutting down, logging off, deleting comments and leaving the space,” Kyla tells PEOPLE.

Ever-confident Bella, for her part, often advises her mom to “ignore it” when their haters speak up. Kyla tells PEOPLE she’s grateful her daughter knows intuitively to block it out.

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“I know this online world. This digital world is not changing. I always tell Bella, 'Everyone's going to deal with people like this. You got to learn how to deal with them, because the overall picture is we want to advocate for medical families,’ ” Kyla explains. “We don't want to just give those trolls a win and just log out … we're going to stand up for the kiddos that need a voice.”

Bella inherited her mom’s tough skin, but Kyla says they still take breaks from TikTok and keep an open line of communication about how social media is making them feel.

One thing remains constant, though: both Mom and daughter are encouraged to keep creating content for their heartening army of fans, which they call the “Bella Bravelings.”

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“That's who we're here for. That's who we show up for. We keep our focus on them and we're happy that they support us,” Kyla tells PEOPLE, adding that she hopes their loyal followers continue the cycle of positivity and refrain from harmful retaliation against bullies.

“[Bella] understands that there's a community out there that cares about her,” Kyla says. “That's what she knows and that's what keeps her going too.”

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