Table of contents for 23-May-2019 in Pick Me Up!

Sore eye Q I recently had an eye infection after changing contact lenses, how do I avoid this happening again? Amy, Essex A Always wash your hands thoroughly before touching contact lenses to prevent germs or bacteria transferring over, and ensure you only wear them for the recommended time. Making sure longer-term lenses are kept in the correct cleaning solution is vital. A good tip is to carry a spare pair of glasses, particularly if you’re driving, as you can remove your contacts quickly if they become irritating. If your eyes suddenly become painful or swollen, remove the lenses and see your GP or hospital eye clinic as soon as possible. Gals condom? Q Are female condoms an effective contraception? Eliza, Kent A Female condoms are 95 per cent effective…

What’s normal, what’s not? Blushing Everyone blushes from time to time, usually due to emotion – be it embarrassment or anger. But frequent or severe blushing can have not only a significant psychological impact, it could be a sign of anxiety disorder, rosacea or the menopause. If blushing is affecting your quality of life, your GP can offer a range of treatments, from CBT to surgery. 3.5 …that’s how many hours of TV a day puts you at risk of memory loss if you are over 50 years old, according to University College London. HEALTH TIP Have you tried… The i-gotU Life app? t helps you track workouts and creates personalised training programmes to help you reach your fitness goals. You can also use the Fitness Pals function to invite…

Personalised Beach Towel, £24.99, firebox.com A full-on pressie for your BFF or one way to stop you missing your partner on holiday, the folk at firebox. com will print any face you want on a huge beach towel. Just upload a photo. Verdict: BONKERS! Totally bonkers! Just why? Lloyds Pharmacy Allergy Reliever, £19.99, lloydspharmacy.com Great for hay fever sufferers, this nose probe uses red light to suppress symptoms, including watery eyes and a runny nose. If using other allergy medication, check the packaging before use. Verdict: GENIUS! Avery clever idea. Raised Spirit CBD Coconut Oil with Cacao, £39.99, raisedspirit.com CBD is making its way into our kitchens. Designed to be used in smoothies for an extra boost, this tasty coconut oil reduces…

The beauty and cosmetics industry is estimated to be worth a whopping £9.77billion. How young is too young when it comes to our kids wearing make-up? For some of us, it’s for special occasions only. For others, it’s part of our daily routine. But it’s likely that most of us have a make-up bag hanging around the house somewhere. We probably remember the first time we dipped our toe into the beauty world, too - perhaps as teenagers, when we picked out an orangey foundation or applied a sticky body glitter to our arms for a school disco. We might look back now and laugh, yet at the time wearing make-up seemed so important, just as it is to this generation of children. But how young is too young? Recent…

T he idea that your life can change in an instant is terrifying. Back in September 2015, I’d had an asthma attack so severe I’d been admitted to Nottingham City Hospital. Thankfully, two days later, I was due to be discharged. Couldn’t wait to get home to my husband Liam, 28, and our daughter Nevaeh, 11 months. But as I waited for the doctor, my phone vibrated. It was Liam. A roofer, he had to work that day, so I was getting a lift home later from my parents Tina, 49, and Mark, 53, who were babysitting. ‘Hello love,’ I grinned. Only the voice on the end wasn’t my husband. It was one of his workmates. ‘Don’t panic,’ he said. ‘But Liam’s fallen off a ladder. A helicopter has taken…

My girlfriend Ana, 24, showing off her pool skills in the local pub – I didn’t have the heart to point out the mistake! Adam Clarkson, Birtley My friend Jenny and I visited an elephant sanctuary in Thailand. We met this lovely elephant who was being well looked after and he was so friendly. Genna Cooper, Prenton Here is a photo me as I was finishing the Great Birmingham Run Half Marathon for the Alzheimer’s Society in 3 hours 18 minutes. Kelly Whitton, Halesowen My little boy Jett, 4 weeks old, likes to reach for the stars when he’s asleep. Stacy Gibson, Wordsley While on holiday in Mexico, my soon to be son-in-law was enjoying a swim with this lovely dolphin. Debb Hunt, Nottingham If you go down to the…

Thinking back, I only have flashes of what happened next. A passerby coming up to me, calling the emergency services. The ambulance arriving, and the paramedics trying their best to keep me awake. But I was so cold, and was losing blood fast. The next thing I remember properly is waking up in the hospital, with doctors and nurses floating around. And my dad Skip, 69, and my step-mum Destiny, 70, were by my bedside. But what I remember most is the pain. My whole body ached. Just taking a breath was almost impossible. Trying to speak or swallow, completely unthinkable. Everything from my eyes to my ribs were black and blue. Doctors gave me a day to really wake up before they listed my injuries. And I couldn’t believe…

1 Eat orange-coloured food According to dietician Helen Bond, eating carrots, dried apricots, oranges, sweet potatoes and mangoes can help you stop snoring. This is because they help keep mucous membranes healthy, including those in your nose. 2 Change position The NHS recommends sleeping on your side because lying on your back can allow your tongue to fall backward into your throat and narrow your airway. Also try raising your head around four inches when sleeping. 3 Time to ban the booze ‘Alcohol makes the muscles and tissues at the back of the throat relax more than they normally would, blocking the airway and exacerbating snoring,’ Helen says.…

1 Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is pressure on a nerve in your wrist. ■ True ■ False 2 Symptoms tend to build over time and peak in the mornings. ■ True ■ False 3 You can treat CTS yourself by wearing a wrist splint to keep the wrist straight and relieve pressure on the nerve, or taking painkillers to ease pain. ■ True ■ False 4 There is no need to see your GP. ■ True ■ False 1 TRUE Symptoms include pain, tingling, numbness or weakness in your fingers, hand or arm. 2 FALSE Symptoms often start slowly and come and go sporadically, and are usually worse at night. 3 TRUE You can also cut down on things that may be causing it, such as using vibrating machinery for…

Cathy Torrez had everything going for her. Dark-haired, petite, she was known as ‘Cat’ to loved ones, who described her as vibrant, beautiful, with a contagious smile. An honours student at university, recognised for her high grades, she had aspirations for her future. She tutored schoolchildren in the tight-knit community she grew up in - in Placentia, California - and wanted to become a social worker. Cathy’s high-school sweetheart Sam Lopez was a family friend. The pair had grown up living just a few doors apart. Her eldest sister Tina was married to Sam’s older brother Armando. In early 1994, Cathy, 20, and Sam, 23, decided to give their on-off relationship another shot. Despite agreeing to date other people, Sam told Cathy he wanted them to elope. Cathy wasn’t sure,…

Settling down on the sofa in front of the TV, I couldn’t wait to tuck into the large burger warmly resting on my lap. It was January 2017 and the countdown to my wedding that April was officially on. Engaged to Devon, then 25, after a year and a half together, we were excitedly planning our nuptials. But unlike most brides-to-be, I wasn’t frantically dieting. No, when it came to food, I continued to snack on burgers, hot dogs and pizzas. And even though I weighed more than 24st and wore a size-26 dress, I didn’t feel the need to lose any weight. You see, I was used to being on the large side, I’d been that way all my life... At 13, I weighed 17st. All I did was…

I don’t encourage my 9-year-old to wear make-up, as I want her to remain my little girl for as long possible. Kids  grow up too quickly these days as it is. She may ask if she’s going to a party, but it’s kept to a minimum – a little eye shadow and lip gloss. Natalie Taylor, Huddersfield On the weekends, my 10-year-old has started wearing a little make-up. I discreetly check she’s  not going out looking like a painted doll, but as long as it’s not too much, then I don’t comment. If I make a fuss and stop her completely, she will only rebel later. Tracey Sutton, Aylesbury Most schools don’t allow make-up and that’s how it should be, but if other kids in my child’s class were wearing…

Supersimple chicken curry  Serves: 4 Prep: 5 min Cook: 30 min ◻ Low-calorie cooking spray ◻ 1 large onion, sliced ◻ 450g chicken breast (skin and visible fat removed), diced ◻ 3 garlic cloves, crushed ◻ 400ml water ◻ 3tbsp curry powder ◻ 1tbsp ground turmeric ◻ 1tbsp tomato puree ◻ Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper To serve: ◻ Samosas (optional) ◻ Cooked rice (optional) 1 Spray a large frying pan with low-calorie cooking spray and place over a medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 2 min until softened slightly, then add the diced chicken to the pan and cook for 5 min until browned. 2 Add the crushed garlic to the pan and cook for 1 min, then add all the other ingredients. The water…

ARIES 21 March–20 April You think it’s a case of better the devil you know…but how wrong you are! Your sign has high standards, and you need to live your life in a way of which you can be proud. Time spent with new friends leads the way to your best opportunity yet. Call: 09058 170 710* TAURUS 21 April–21 May Plans you thought were set in stone turn out to be anything but. You learn, as you will again and again in the year ahead, that you’re only happy when you’re honest with yourself and those around you. I know you’re tired. Rest when you say you will, please. Important things await. Call: 09058 170 711* GEMINI 22 May–21 June You cross the path of some influential and lucky…

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Sitting down at the kitchen table, my mum Deborah, 41, looked serious. I wriggled, feeling impatient to go back and play with my toys. ‘Amanda, do you ever feel like you’re...missing something?’ she asked. I fidgeted. Why does she keep asking me this? ‘No, Mummy,’ I replied, irritated. I was 7, and knew what was coming. I’d heard it many times before. For as long as I could remember, I’d known that Mum and my dad Terry had adopted me. It wasn’t a shock. They were white, whereas I had darker skin and Asian features. Even at that age I noticed the looks when we walked round the local supermarket together. ‘We adopted you from an agency in South Korea,’ Mum repeated to me now. We’d shared so much, and…

I was curled up in my sleeping bag at a friend’s house when the pain tore through my stomach like a carving knife. This is it , I thought, grimacing in agony. It was summer 2007 and, aged 12, I thought it was the beginning of my first period. But it was far more painful than I’d been expecting it to be. The searing agony returned each month, but never any blood. And when I finally did start bleeding a year later, things were even worse. My mum Suzanne took me to the GP, but they said it was just a painful period. Yet I’d often be so unwell that I had to be rushed to A&E every month. ‘What’s wrong with me?’ I sobbed. By 14, I was tormented…

Romance? Don’t make me laugh! By the time I hit my 40s, I’d given up looking for Mr Right. Mr Reliable was all I was after. Enter Greg, 32. With his steady job and placid personality, he was safe, solid. Perfect. ‘I’ll take care of you,’ he’d promised when we’d met in March 1998. As a single mum of three, that meant more than any flowers or chocolates. We married six months later. Only his ex-wife, Michelle, wanted child maintenance, for their two kids. Fair enough. But with five kids to provide for, we were £1,600 behind every month. Three months later, I called Michelle. We were amicable, despite her grievances with Greg. ‘We can’t afford maintenance payments,’ I said. ‘I don’t want to punish you, but watch Greg’s spending,’…

Charles Worthington Volume & Bounce Texturising Spray, £6.99 People with thin hair can’t get enough of this oomph-in-a-can. Simply spritz on to dry hair at the root, then ruffle with your fingers for instant volume, without backcombing. VO5 Dry Backcomb Spray, £4.40 Backcombing is used by stylists to create long-lasting volume but it can be damaging to hair. This gives a similar root-booting effect without the back and forth brushing. Spray 30cm from hair directly on to roots. Batiste Dry Shampoo, £2.99 Dry shampoo is the ultimate texturiser, with the added bonus of mopping up excess oil so hair feels fresh and bouncy until your next wash. Focus on the roots to create lift or spray through the lengths to add separation. Umberto Giannini Piecey Paste, £7 If you have…

BRISTOL Ion Boboc, 26, and Christiana Tudor-Dobre, 24 This duo kept a 31-year-old man as a slave at their Bristol home. The vulnerable man, who slept in a cupboard under the stairs, was made to eat highly spiced food and ordered to dance and carry out physical challenges. Police were alerted in July 2018 and the pair were convicted of requiring a person to perform forced or compulsory labour and fraud at Taunton Crown Court. Boboc was jailed for four years and two months, and Tudor-Dobre for three years and seven months. They were both issued with a Slavery and Trafficking Prevention Order, valid for eight years. WEST YORKSHIRE Jason Allen, 39 Cowardly thief Jason Allen has been sent down after targeting two elderly ladies in Huddersfield. Last July, Allen…