Pick Me Up! 27-Dec-2018

Good as gold that’s always been my Chloe. As a child, with a heart as big as a bucket - she’d play ‘Mummy’ when her friends came to our place for sleepovers. ‘Do you want anything to eat or drink?’ she’d fuss. ‘Are you warm enough?’ She was very caring about people and would go the extra mile. I’ve always been proud of that spirit in her. But sometimes I did worry that people might take advantage of her kind nature. And sure there were some that did, but when she brought her boyfriend Haitham home in 2015, I was thrilled. ‘He’s a nice boy,’ I’d teased as Chloe blushed. I knew that not only was he going to do right by my girl, but some really painful times over…

I felt more like Bambi on ice when me and my friend Ceri went ice-skating for the first time. I was very happy that I didn't fall over, though… Zoe Ashton, Southsea Alice, 4, thought she’d stumbled into her own wonderland when she met her favourite Disney characters. I still think she’s the Belle of the ball. Stacey Hutchins, Oldbury Very glad to see that elves are being safety conscious! Mr Griffin, Bristol My brother Ben and my boyfriend Jamie felt on top of the world, well, Wales at least, at the summit of Moel Arthur hillfort. Abby George, Denbigh Emily, 4, had a simply magical time when she got to meet Elsa, her favourite Snow Queen. Lyndsey Mallett, Langstone Somebody thought he was being helpful by bringing the Christmas…

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Giggling away with my sister Leanne, I smirked as she whispered another joke into my ear. We both collapsed onto the sofa in hysterics. I was 8, Leanne was 10 - and to me, she was the best big sis ever. Of course, we argued now and again, but we were as thick as thieves most of the time. So when our mum Toni, 28, met Andrew, 19, in 1998, Leanne was the first person I spoke to. ‘He’s going to take us to the arcades!’ I squealed. I was fearful my sister would somehow see my shame Mum was smitten, so were we, and within a couple of months, he’d moved in. Andrew became like a dad to us. Letting us watch our favourite cartoons on TV after school,…

Months later, Mum took Leanne out for the day but she returned home by herself. Leanne had gone into a care home. I’d never felt so alone. Years passed in the same sickening cycle. Until... On New Year’s Eve 2007, when I was 18, Andrew came into my room with that familiar sick look in his eye. But as he pushed his hand down my trousers, I grabbed his wrist and glared at him. ‘Don’t ever touch me again,’ I hissed. He scarpered, and for the first time, I reckoned the tables had turned. That was the last time Andrew ever touched me. Though I moved on with my life, forming friendships and relationships, the abuse tormented me every day. When I was 22, I fell pregnant with my son…

At the lunch table, a gaggle of girls were talking in hushed tones. Joining them, I soon figured out why. ‘I’ve started using tampons,’ one of them said. ‘Oh, yeah - me, too,’ I lied. It was 1997, I was 14 and already beginning to think my body wasn’t like my friends’. I’d started my periods and wanted to use tampons, but I’d never managed to insert one. When I tried, it was just too painful, as if the tampon had nowhere to go... Every guy that I dated complained of the same thing In the end, I gave up, used sanitary towels instead, putting it down to inexperience. So when my mates were whispering tips to each other I kept quiet, not wanting to feel like the odd one…