Table of contents for 08-Feb-2018 in Pick Me Up!

When my eldest daughter Michelle and her husband Vic had my very first grandchild, Lucy, in 1987, I was so excited. We’ve been close since she was a little baby, and I used to love it when she stopped in to visit me on her way home from school as a teenager. Lucy’s grown up to be a strong, wonderful young woman with a good job at a medical-research company. She’s done us all so proud. A few years back, Lucy met a lovely young man called Mark Strange. It was obvious they were perfect for each other, and loved travelling the world. The two eventually married in their favourite destination - New York City, throwing a fantastic wedding party for all the family a few months later. Then, last…

Sitting in the front passenger seat, I felt faint, light-headed. ‘I really don’t feel very well,’ I said to my husband Ryan, 32. It was 30 April last year and we were driving to IKEA to buy a set of drawers. But it was more than the thought of the crowds and the queues making me feel dodgy. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it but I knew something wasn’t right. I rarely complained when I was poorly. As a mum of three, I just got on with it. But this felt different. Ryan was driving, while our youngest, Jacob, 18 months, was in the back. And that’s the last thing I remember... Three days later, I woke up in a hospital bed, connected to countless wires, surrounded by…

1 This is a heart condition. 2 It can start from a minor injury. 3 It can cause flu-like symptoms. 4 There are currently no treatments. 1 FALSE It’s a serious, rare bacterial infection that damages tissue beneath the skin, as well as surrounding organs and muscles. 2 TRUE The condition can develop from minor injuries but gets worse quickly and can be potentially life-threatening if not treated in its early stages. 3 TRUE Intense pain, fever, and other flu-like symptoms can appear in the early stages. Later symptoms include swelling, redness, diarrhoea, vomiting and dark blotches that become blisters on the skin. 4 FALSE Main treatments are antibiotics, supportive treatment or surgery to remove infected tissue. In extreme cases, amputation can be necessary. Next week: Bornholm disease…

Arriving in Wales for my first holiday alone, I felt a rush of excitement...as well as dread. What if I get lonely? I worried, driving towards the accommodation I’d booked. It was June 2016, and I’d jetted off from my home in Utrecht, Holland, for a break from my police-officer job. I’d used Airbnb - the online company that lets you search for people who are letting out rooms or whole homes short-term - and I’d found a log cabin in Garnant, Carmarthenshire, 500 miles from home. It was let by a bloke called Simon, and the photos made it seem cosy - romantic, even. But the only thing I’d be snuggling up to at night was my dog Era. It’s not like I hadn’t tried looking for love. I’d…

Gin & Tonic Cupcake Kit, £24.99, firebox.com Bake yourself a boozy treat with this gin-tastic sweet kit. It contains everything you need to make 12 cakes. Verdict: BONKERS! Great for a girls’ night in, though. Dr. Organic Snail Gel Facial Serum, £18.99, Holland & Barrett There are normally a million things we’d rather do than rub snail slime on our faces, but this fresh-smelling serum might just have changed our minds. It works wonders to plump skin and reduce wrinkles. Verdict: GENIUS! Sounds bonkers but a brilliant product. IKO Finger Toothbrush, £5.99, melolabs.co.uk Designed to be used without toothpaste or water, this little finger toothbrush gets to work on your teeth and gums for perfect pearlies on the go. Verdict: GENIUS! This will be ideal for…

Transgender, or trans: People who identify as other than the gender that they were assigned at birth. Transition: The process of changing gender presentation, through social, medical or surgical change. Trans man: Someone who has transitioned or is transitioning from female to male. Trans woman: Someone who has transitioned or is transitioning from male to female. Gender dysphoria: A medical diagnosis describing an individual who experiences a mismatch between their gender identity and their apparent physical sex. Transvestite/cross dresser: A person who wears clothing of a gender different to the one they were assigned at birth, but doesn’t usually feel the need to live permanently in that role.…

ARIES 21 March–20 April Never give up trying to do what you really want to do. You’ll only be living someone else’s life if you dig yourself into to such a hole. It takes more of your energy in the long run to buckle than it does to fight a little now. Be true to who you are, my friend. Life is waiting. Call: 09058 170 710* TAURUS 21 April–21 May News from far away gives reason to feel newly excited about the year ahead. You know now that things can never be as they were. You’re hungry for nothing less than outright success and those who have stood in your way are no longer in a position to do so. Call: 09058 170 711* GEMINI 22 May–21 June The…

They didn’t tell me they were going to pull silly faces! Nina Steer, North Petherton Here’s my mum trendsetting in North Wales just before her 91st birthday. Jenny Harden, Borthyn When your Prosecco loves you back! Susan Wallace, Belfast Browsing around the toyshop, I just had to hold hands with this Playmobil policeman. Isn’t he a cute little chap? Diane Hakala, Sheffield I always thought I had a hot boyfriend, but check him out holding up the sun at the National Science and Media Museum. He’s sizzling! Jo Greasby, Clayton After a weekend of wedding planning, I felt it was appropriate to put my fiancé in the stocks. Sarah Myers, Bracknell My son Fraser, 5, loves a good workout in the park. No pain, no gain! Natasha Douglas, Rainham My…

Hip chips These trendy Blue Corn Tortilla Chips by Food Should Taste Good are just £1.50 in Tesco (usually £2.19) until 6 Feb. You’ll find them in the free-from aisle – but don’t be put off, as they’re a real crowd-pleaser! Go fly with your guy this 14 Feb! Make sparks fly this Valentine’s Day and give your special someone the thrill of a lifetime at iFLY indoor skydiving. iFLY has a great Valentine’s Day deal – 25% off bookings. The offer runs from 6 February until 14 February. Tickets can be purchased from iflyworld.co.uk Something sweet Sweeten up your hot drinks and bakes without the calories with these Canderel granules, on offer for 90p (usually £1.80), in Sainsbury’s until 6 Feb. Wax lyrical… These gorgeous candles are…

It all began when I was 10 years old and on holiday in Spain. Looking in the mirror, I saw two white circles around my eyes. ‘I’ve been wearing my sunglasses while sunbathing for too long!’ I giggled to my parents Tracey, 43, and David, 42. I thought the patches would go as my tan faded. But back home, the white marks stayed. Soon, another white spot appeared in the middle of my spine. Within months, the white patches had reached my hands and knees. Mum took me to the GP, anxious it might be skin cancer. Instead... ‘Dionne has vitiligo,’ the doctor revealed. Referred to a dermatologist in Edinburgh, we learned that vitiligo causes white patches due to a lack of the pigment melanin in the skin. There was…

On 29 June 2014, little Nathan O’Brien was sleeping over at the home of his grandparents Alvin and Kathryn Liknes. A happy little boy who went everywhere in his Superman costume, he loved spending time with his grandparents and was looking forward to showing his grandpa his new skills on the monkey bars at the local park. Alvin and Kathryn really doted on Nathan, too, so his mum Jennifer was happy to leave her son with her mum and stepdad for a sleepover at their home in Calgary, in the Canadian province of Alberta. But, when she went back to collect him the next day, the door to their home was open. Inside, there was blood on the kitchen walls, bloody handmarks on the paintwork. Upstairs, there were pools of…

‘Kids don’t even know what they want for Christmas at 3, they change their minds 24/7. It is idiotic that a parent would accept it and stand by it.’ Kelly Smith, 33, Fife ‘If my son gets to adolescence and identifies as the opposite gender, I will support him – but, as a toddler, gender is unimportant, they are just children. If he wants to dress up as a princess I’m not thinking he wants to be a girl...he’s just a kid exploring the world.’ Marie Dixon, 44, Leyland ‘I fully support transgender people, but children don’t know what they want for dinner, let alone what gender they are. Leave them be, let them be children and when they get to an age when they start to know more, then…

No7 Naturally Sunkissed Gradual Facial Tan, £9, Boots Nothing gets your skin glowing quite like the sun, but, in winter, this little tube is the next best thing. Apply before going to bed, and wake to a light, natural tan. Sunkissed Insta Glow Shimmer Powder, £3.99, sunkissedbronzing.co.uk Click the end to load the brush with iridescent powder, then sweep over the high points of your face for a gorgeous, subtle glow. Mavala Skin Vitality Anti-Fatigue Alpine Micro-Mist, £14.75, lookfantastic.com Spritz this revitalising spray on to your face during the day to refresh your skin and make-up. It’s like an energy drink for your face! MUA Luxe Light Lustre Liquid Highlight in Opulence, £5, Superdrug For a dewy sheen, get your mitts on this. Just…

Creeping onto the landing, I made my way to the staircase. It was 2am and I’d awoken for a wee, and was now heading downstairs for a glass of water. The lights were off and I didn’t want to put them on and wake up my hubby Vijay, then 56. But I’d lived in our house for 15 years, knew it like the back of my hand. Or so I thought... I went to take the first step but, in the darkness, I misjudged where it was. Before I knew it, I’d somersaulted head-over-heels down the whole flight and landed in a heap at the bottom, with my legs up the stairs. ‘Arghhhh!’ I cried in terror. I felt numb. Was it just shock? Vijay heard my screams and came…

Sunbathing in the back garden, my pet bearded dragon Nala was in her element. It was last May - a roasting-hot day. ‘All right, enough sun for you,’ I said, scooping her up. Nala was 8 months old, but I’d had her since she was a baby, and I totally doted on her. After a dinner of her favourite - mealworms - I popped her into her tank. Only, the next morning, after my son Louie, 12, had gone to school, I found Nala slumped over her food. She’d been sick, was lifeless, not breathing. No! Panicking, I lifted her out of the tank and cleared the vomit from her mouth with my fingers. Then I tried to perform CPR - even giving her chest compressions. I was a dental…

Pigeon toes Q My 18-month-old is walking with pigeon toes and on tiptoes. I noticed it as soon as he started walking and it’s not improved. Should he have physio to correct it? Beth, Mansfield A Gait abnormalities in toddlers are common and they often correct themselves without treatment. So wait until he’s at least 2 - then, if it persists, see your health visitor for an assessment. There’s no benefit to being seen before that age. White balloon Q I’ve noticed something which looks and feels like a white balloon in my vagina entrance. I’ve had a hysterectomy and things are OK down there – except that I always need to pee! Helena, Tenby A It sounds like a cystocoele - which is the bladder bulging into the vagina.…

Do you identify as a man or a woman? We bet that’s not a question you’d have heard just a few years ago. Now, gender identity is a topic rarely out of the news. And it’s got to be a good thing that British society has become more tolerant of trans issues - and more willing to talk about them. But at what age should that conversation begin? It goes without saying that parents want to protect their kids from difficult, complex or ‘grown-up’ issues. However, gender identity is not something that only adults question. Recent figures show a sharp rise in the number of kids using the Gender Identity Development Service, based in London - 2,016 children in 2016-17, compared to just 97 in 2009. As a result, new…

Last November, it was reported that drag queens will be going into UK schools to read stories to children. The scheme's website explains they aim to 'capture the imagination and fun of the gender fluidity of childhood, while giving children a glamorous, positive, and unabashedly queer role model. By providing spaces in which kids are able to see people who defy rigid gender restrictions, we allow them to imagine the world in which people can present as they wish.' See dragqueenstorytime.co.uk…

Endeavour, ITV Shaun Evans is back as the newly promoted DS Endeavour Morse in a new six-part series. Also returning is Roger Allam, who plays DI Fred Thursday, and Anton Lesser as Chief Superintendent Reginald Bright. It’s now 1968 and the pair deal with the reappearance of Joan Thursday after she went missing. Plus Endeavour is having to reluctantly mentor a new recruit, DC George Fancy, played by Lewis Peek. The first case involves a priceless Fabergé egg eyed up by an international thief. Eurovision: You Decide!, BBC2 It’s time to choose which song will represent our nation in this year’s Eurovision Song Contest. Mel Giedroyc and Swedish Eurovision winner Mans Zelmerlow are hosting the show live from Brighton Dome. Who’ll scoop up the viewers’ votes? The X-Files, C5 After…

Here’s Blue and Delilah’s first selfie! Lucinda Norris, Guiseley Basset hounds can sleep anywhere! My Cecil is living proof! Louise Milne, Worthing Our poor labradoodle Lula doesn’t get a look in when the cat sleeps in her bed! Ria Harding, Somersham My gecko Fudge loves dressing up. I think she’s really rocking these bat wings! Fiona Dunlop, Angus Here’s my cat Mittens curling up for a nap in a shoe box after a long day at the office! Dawn Welton, Bradwell My hamster Winnie is rather nosy, especially when her cage is being cleaned! Sue Farrow, Ely…