Innholdsfortegnelse for April 2019 i Pick Me Up! Special

As a parent, you’d do anything to make your children happy – but what happens if the only way to make them smile is to let them live as the opposite sex? That was the dilemma Stevi (pg18) faced when her daughter Layla asked to become a boy. For her, there was only one answer. Happiness has come in a very strange form for Rachel (pg40). Battling symptoms she couldn’t explain, she finally got answers and unexpected relief from munching on pickled onions! Charlene (pg22) also had lots of unexplained symptoms while she was pregnant, but thanks to her unborn baby alerting doctors to a deadly disease, she’s been given the chance to be a mum. All mums take on a huge amount of roles, but Helen (pg55) wants parents…

Stacking the last of the shelves, I glanced at the clock. It was nearly 8pm one evening in October 2017, and almost the end of my shift. I was the manager at a local newsagents, and I loved my job. I knew all of the regulars by name, and I liked seeing the same kids coming in for treats in the afternoons after school. Then there were the stay-at-home mums, the little old ladies and the workmen who popped in. The job wasn’t exciting, but my little newsagents felt like the heart of the town. That night, I’d just finished cashing up the takings and putting the money into the safe. Pulling out my phone, I text my hubby Steve, 50. Can you pick me up just after 8? Sure…

Looking at my reflection in the mirror, my eyes focused on my belly. Bloated again. It had ballooned, was solid as a rock and as painful as always. I'd suffered with bowel complications since birth. As a child, I'd had two ops to strengthen my bowel muscles. But nothing had worked, and over the years, I'd become used to the pain, hardly going out. I was too frightened I'd get painful stomach cramps and have to dash to the loo. If I did go out, I wouldn't eat. That way, I won't need to go to the toilet, I told myself. I couldn't take the pain anymore I always covered up under baggy clothes, feeling self-conscious of my bloated tummy. And it was common for people to think that I…

Halo Top, vanilla bean flavour Raw cacao shavings Blueberries Coconut flakes Ice cubes 1. Assemble all the ingredients into a blender. 2. Blend briefly, achieving a full, airy consistency, but take care to avoid over-blending to a runny texture. 3. Pop your vanilla milkshake into a pretty glass jar, decorate to taste, and devour through a straw on a hot sunny day! With just 280 calories per tub, Halo Top is a high-protein ice cream you can feel good about eating. Grab a tub for £5 from all major supermarkets. For more recipes, visit www.halotop.uk…

Stomping up the stairs, my daughter screamed at the top of her voice. The loud, high-pitched wail rattled around the house, making me and my husband Josh, 38, wince. ‘Layla, what’s wrong?’ I called. ‘Come downstairs.’ But she just glared at me, before storming into her room and slamming the door shut. It was 2015, and Layla – my only child – was seven years old. I suspected that she was going through a phase. A bad phase that, so far, had lasted at least a year. And I was getting worried. ‘Her teachers say she’s playing up at school,’ I fretted to Josh. And at home, she was having regular tantrums. It wasn’t like her – she was normally a very studious, mature kid. But if we asked her…

My son Adam, six, ran along the beach, racing to the sea to splash around in the shallow waves. Whooping with excitement, he laughed happily as the cold water splashed his legs. Adam was the perfect image of a healthy little boy. Except for one thing… Later, I mentioned it to my husband Andy, 42. ‘Adam’s chest looks different from the other kids,’ I said. It was summer 2008 and we were on holiday with friends in Abersoch, Gwynedd. I loved seeing Adam and his little sister Grace, three, having so much fun together. But now, looking at him, I couldn’t help worrying. I’d first noticed that the middle of Adam’s chest looked slightly sunken as I was getting him changed into a T-shirt a couple of weeks earlier. And…

Hanging the last bauble on the Christmas tree, I sat down on the sofa to get my breath back. ‘You just can’t beat a chocolate decoration,’ I gasped to my hubby Brian, gobbling another down in a matter of seconds. In fact, I’d probably eaten more than I’d hung on the tree! With the tree sitting pretty, we sat with a box of sweets and admired our handiwork Flicking through my phone, I saw one of my friends had invited me to a Christmas market in London with some of our mates. It was a yearly trip, and they had even organised a coach to bus everyone down. It will be loads of fun, bring Brian, my friend wrote. I would have loved to. But at 19st, aged 45, I…

Getting changed after my dance class, I spotted drops of blood oozing from my hips. ‘What’s that?’ I muttered, confused. My skin was paper thin across my hip bones and I reckoned I must have cut myself doing the floor exercises. My cravings were hiding a sinister secret It was September 2015, and though I loved my food, my appetite had recently gone through the floor. My weight, too, apparently. Later, my mum Sylvia, 49, quizzed me over dinner. ‘Why aren’t you eating?’ she asked. Staring at the plate of food in front of me I suddenly felt exhausted. ‘I just can’t,’ I shrugged. Dinner didn’t interest me… Yet there was something I craved. Constantly. Crisps or anything salty. Even really odd snacks, like stock cubes! For the past month,…

In the air Q Hay fever is causing my asthma to flare up and makes my chest really tight. What will help? Beverley, Kent A Hay fever is a common asthma trigger and can cause wheezing, a tight chest and even cause an asthma attack. The best way to stay well is to take your preventer inhaler as prescribed. This builds up protection in your airways over time, so if you do come into contact with pollen which triggers your asthma, you are less likely to have an asthma attack. You should also take your reliever inhaler out with you and make sure you are looking after your asthma by having a yearly review with your doctor, and have a written asthma plan. Other top tips include…

Scientists have discovered the secret behind why some people are skinny while others pile on the pounds easily. Scientists compared DNA samples from people with a BMI of less than 18 with those who are obese. They found obese people were more likely to have a set of genes linked to being overweight, while skinny people had fewer of these genes. Lead researcher Professor Sadaf Farooqi from the University of Cambridge said it's easy to criticise people for their weight, but that science shows things are far more complex. The long-term goal of the study is to see if these genes can help shape new weight loss strategies.…

Slender, sprightly bodies plunged into the water. ‘I'm going to jump off the top diving board for charity,' I said. It was 2016, and if Gemma Collins could do it for the ITV show Splash, then why couldn't I? ‘You're too old to be getting up to things like that,' my husband Simon, 42, teased. He was used to all my crazy ideas, like teaching my horses to dance, or dressing up as a fairy for the Christmas lights switch-on in our village of Iwade, Kent. Sadly, I'd injured my back, so the doctor said no to my taking the 10- metre plunge. ‘On to plan B then,' I said, knowing that my next idea wouldn't be far behind. Then, one night that November, we were snuggled on the sofa…

TIME TO SHINE You know that feeling when you’ve said something really insightful to help a friend and you feel like the Dalai Lama, or you’ve just made everyone laugh and feel like Jo Brand? This is your personality at its best, shining, glowing and generally being amazing. So why is that when we go into situations where we feel like we’re in the spotlight – that most brilliant, wittiest, smartest part of our personality seems to disappear and we end up presenting a dull version of ourself? In order to make sure our best self is with us when we need it the most, we have to take some practical steps. Let’s delve and look at what we can do and in what situations... THE INTERVIEW DON'T – look…

1 Contact information Children should be able to share their full name, your name, their address and phone number in case of an emergency. 2 Never leave with a stranger Your child should know to never go anywhere with a stranger. Remind them that in an emergency, you will send a relative or trusted friend to pick them up, and never someone they don’t know. 3 Road safety Teach your child to look left and right before crossing a road, not to run near a road, and to understand traffic signals. 4 Stay where they are Teach your child that if they’re in the supermarket and can’t find you, to go to the cashier for help. Reinforce the idea that they should never leave the shop. 5 Online safety Teach…

Pectus excavatum is a rare condition causing the breastbone to be sunken rather than level with the ribs, so the middle of the chest looks caved in. It affects one in 1,000 children and is four times as common in boys than in girls. It’s thought that it may be caused by the cartilage in the ribcage overgrowing and can appear as a symptom of Marfan syndrome and sometimes alongside scoliosis. It can also run in families. Treatment isn’t always necessary, but if the condition is affecting lung function or causing emotional distress, surgery may be beneficial.…

One of my favourite memories is of watching you happily race our son Jamaal, four, around the track in his electric car. Thick as thieves, both laughing your heads off. In those moments, my heart felt fit to burst. You were such a brilliant dad. Your bond with Jamaal was plain for all to see. Until… We were abroad in South Africa in March 2015. You had a relentless fever and sore throat, and ended up in hospital. The doctors suspected meningitis and sepsis – both dangerous and potentially fatal infections. Antibiotics didn’t work, and that night, I received a call. ‘You need to get here now,’ a nurse said. Leaving Jamaal asleep at home with our nanny, I rushed to the hospital to see you. When I arrived there,…

Lifting my head off my pillow, I glanced at the alarm clock: 2pm. ‘That can’t be right,’ I muttered to myself, sitting up and reaching for my glasses. I always woke up at 9am to take my dogs for a walk. I never slept in for five minutes, let alone a whole morning! It was 11 March last year, Mother’s Day. Things went downhill very quickly My daughters Carole-Anne, 26, and Boo, 30, had invited me out for a meal to celebrate. I was due there at 5.30pm. Pulling on my dressing gown, I noticed my skin seemed itchy. At the bottom of the stairs, I bumped into my friend Chris, 38. He’d stayed overnight on the sofa downstairs. ‘Are you OK?’ he asked. ‘My skin feels like it’s crawling,’…

Nothing worked. Not sitting on my hands, or shoving them in my pockets. When I got the itch, there was no stopping me. I just had to scratch. ‘You’ll only make it worse, love’ my hubby Rory, 33, said, as I attacked an irritating patch on my back. ‘I can’t help it,’ I sighed. I’d suffered from eczema all my life and had the odd breakout. But after moving to Ireland in July 2012 with Rory and my son Alex, six, my skin had got much worse. Before, I’d had itchy patches in my elbow creases, but now, most of my top half was bright red. The itching drove me mad. It was painful, too, as the patches would crack with the slightest movement. I'd leave flakes of skin on…

A pet owner has set a Guinness World Record for the biggest gathering of dogs of a single breed – by bringing together more than 1,000 beagles for a stroll. Sean Parkinson, 39, organised the incredible ‘Beaglelandia' event, which saw 1,029 beagles from across the country gather in a Merseyside park. It smashed the previous record, set in Mexico, by a gathering of 783 Yorkshire Terriers. Official confirmation from Guinness World Records states they are the new holders of the ‘largest single-breed dog walk' record. Sean, from Wirral in Merseyside, said: ‘I'm over the moon. I couldn't believe it, to be honest. ‘It's such a brilliant thing for us to achieve – and we had a great day doing it. ‘People came from all over the UK with their beagles,…

Sitting in the hospital waiting room, I waited anxiously for news on my little boy. We’d taken Lucas, three, there three days earlier, after he caught a nasty cold. Usually, we’d have let the fever run its course. But Lucas was different, as he was battling leukaemia. Every sniff and cold posed a risk to his fragile immune system, shot to pieces by the chemotherapy. So now it was October 2015, and we were back on the cancer ward at Sheffield Children’s Hospital for a routine checkup. It was then I noticed a familiar woman with brown hair and a kind face pass by in the corridor. ‘I really hope that’s not who I think it is,’ I whispered to my partner Damian, 29. ‘What do you mean?’ Damian asked,…

They say the mirror doesn’t lie. And unfortunately, my mirror was telling me that at six months pregnant, I already looked like the side of a house. Peering more closely at my face didn’t help either. My eyelashes were so short and pale, I looked like Phil Mitchell from EastEnders ! Needless to say, I wasn’t feeling very attractive. ‘It’s been ages since I had false lashes done,’ I moaned to my fiancé, George. I used to go to a salon regularly to get them done. But now I was getting bigger and bigger, the one I normally went to felt too far away. It just wasn’t worth the hassle. But a few days later, while George and I were out shopping, I spotted a different salon and thought I’d…

Can I start again? I had breast cancer last year, and I'm so relieved to be in remission, but it’s made me a different person. My husband doesn’t seem right for me now, neither does my old job. I feel like I want to completely start again – should I follow my gut? Tara, Bournemouth YES  Pick Me Up! reader Emma from Glasgow says: You’ve just been through a major event, and if that’s made you reconsider your life choices, then I say good for you! Having cancer is life’s way of telling us to make the most of it, so don’t waste your time with people and jobs that don’t make you happy. This is your chance to start again, so take it! NO  Pick Me Up! reader Sophie…

Get your money back Looking for travel compensation? AirHelp is a new app that helps you get compensated for the worst parts of travel – missed connections, lost baggage, and delayed, overbooked, or cancelled flights. Just scan your boarding pass or input your flight details, and the app will tell you whether you’re owed money. It will also file a claim with the airline for you, update you on your claim’s status, and take care of getting the money to you once everything is finalised. The bank of Mum and Dad Planning a holiday with Mum and Dad? You're not alone. The trend of parents paying to take their grown-up children on holiday extends to sons and daughters in their 50s, a survey by Enterprise Rent-A-Car found. In fact, one…

Snoozing happily on the sofa, the lazy little pup had me in stitches. ‘He turned his nose up at going for a walk,’ I laughed to my mum, Sandra, 51. We were babysitting Theo, a French bulldog, for my sister’s friend Jo, 22. She was off to a concert in Glasgow in July 2016, and needed a dog-sitter. ‘I’ll do it!’ I’d squealed. And the next day, when I had to hand him back to Jo, I could barely let him go. I’d always wanted a dog, but no amount of nagging would persuade my parents. I’d almost given up on the idea. But then, in April last year, Mum got a new job working evenings. ‘Fancy a dog for Christmas?’ she asked. ‘I can look after it for you…