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My daughters’ eating habits are so worrying...
This must be a very difficult situation for you and your daughters. It is true the modelling business continually defends the need to portray the latest fashions to their best effect on very tall, thin girls. There was a report published by the British Medical Association in 2000 on eating disorders, body image and the media, calling for a different attitude to a realistic body image. It seems that the trend among celebrities of aiming to be a size 00 has unfortunately encouraged the opposite.
Your model daughter may not have an eating disorder but is experiencing at least one of the clinical effects of sustaining a low body weight. Your other daughter is in serious danger of developing an eating disorder, namely bulimia. She'd rather throw up than think she might put on weight. She will be feeling she can't control her life living with two conflicting urges, the desire to eat and to be thin. Vomiting is the only way of resolving the conflict.
Both of your girls need to be encouraged to discuss their lifestyle with a GP urgently. You can find out more on all aspects of eating disorders from the EDA, the Eating Disorders Association, at www.edauk.com. The over-18s helpline is on 0845 634 1414 or helpmail@edauk.com, while there's a Youthline (up to and including 18) on 0845 634 7650 or talkback@edauk.com and a Youthline text service on 07977 493 345 (std text rates). A recorded information service is available on 0906 302 0012 (calls cost 50p per minute and the message lasts approximately eight minutes). Textphone: 01603 753322.
From the way you've phrased your question I can see you show some of the common features of a depressive illness. Loss of self-esteem is a major feature and your reluctance to visit your doctor again because you think you could be a nuisance is a consequence of this symptom. Feeling that you're a failure contributes to your unwillingness to take prescribed medication. Antidepressants don't cause an addiction like you get with alcohol, valium (diazepam) or opiates like heroin in that you don't need to keep increasing the dose to achieve the same effect and you don't crave them when you stop. But there is some evidence that one out of every three people experience withdrawal symptoms like anxiety, tummy upsets, vivid dreams and the sensation of electric shocks under the skin. These are generally mild and are avoided if the drug is withdrawn slowly.
My baby of 12 months has croup. Is it very contagious? Can I take him out? How dangerous is it, as his cough sounds terrible?
Croup is caused by a viral infection affecting the throat and upper airways in mainly under-fives. These are usually the same bugs which cause the cold and sore throats in children so it is infectious. Croup is characterised by a barking cough, develops quickly but disappears quickly too.
The most likely virus responsible is the parainfluenza virus but others include the RS virus, Coxsackie virus and rhinovirus. A rare but dangerous cause is diphtheria, but all children nowadays are immunised against diphtheria. Most children recover without complications. There is no specific treatment but the usual advice for viral infections apply, namely encouraging him to drink plenty of fluids and keeping his temperature down. The atmosphere won't do any harm, but you must judge whether the outdoor conditions are triggering him to cough.
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