DEAR HARRIETTE: My 13-year-old daughter has recently started refusing to attend family gatherings like birthday parties or Sunday dinners at my parents’ house. She says they’re “boring, fake and a waste of time.” I understand that she’s a teenager and trying to find her own identity, but it’s really starting to hurt my parents’ feelings. They miss her and have mentioned that they feel like she doesn’t care about spending time with them anymore.
• The paperboard boxes that grocery items like cereal and frozen food often come packaged in are recyclable materials. If the boxes are greasy, soaked or dirty, they should never be put in your recycling, since they are a contaminant.
DEAR HARRIETTE: My boyfriend is deeply passionate about international humanitarian work. It’s a huge part of who he is and, honestly, one of the reasons I admire and love him so much. Recently, he told me he’s planning to move abroad to work in a conflict zone for an extended period. He sees it as an opportunity to make a real impact, and he feels called to be there.
Dear Doctors: Can a doctor rule out walking pneumonia just by listening to your chest? My daughter and husband both have pneumonia, and I have been feeling weird. There’s no cough or fever, and my oxygen is at 99% saturation, so the doctor said I’m fine. But it’s days later and my chest still hurts, and I still feel tired and breathless. What can I do to be taken seriously?
Dear Doctors: I have had geographic tongue for almost two years. It’s unsightly and sometimes quite painful, but my ENT assures me it’s not related to infection or cancer. A prescription for nystatin oral hasn’t made a difference. Is there anything else that might help?
DEAR HARRIETTE: I’m feeling really terrible because I forgot my best friend’s birthday, and now she’s not speaking to me. We’ve been best friends for over 10 years, and I’ve never missed her birthday before. This year, I ended up working a double shift the day before her birthday, and I was so exhausted that I slept basically the entire next day. By the time I realized what day it was, it was already late, and I had completely missed the window to call or even send a text. I tried reaching out the day after with a sincere apology and even sent her a small gift and a message explaining what happened, but she hasn’t responded. I get that birthdays are important, and I genuinely feel awful for forgetting, but I also wish she could see it for what it was: a one-time mistake, not a reflection of how much I care about her.
DEAR HARRIETTE: Out of nowhere, my mom confided in me that she never really enjoyed being a mother. She said that since I am 45 years old, she feels like she can finally be honest about it. She told me she loves me and my siblings, but the day-to-day experience of raising us was overwhelming and exhausting. She said working full-time and then coming home to care for three children felt like a burden she never really wanted. She even admitted that if she could go back, she wouldn’t have had kids at all.
Dear Doctors: Cannabis is legal where I live. I’m not a heavy user, but I do enjoy it now and then. I just heard about a study that ties using cannabis to heart disease. There’s not a lot of information about how using cannabis affects your health, and I would like to know more about that study.
DEAR HARRIETTE: My oldest daughter is preparing to head to college in the fall. She has worked so hard over the years – as a student and as a sister. Her father and I spent a lot of our time working, and she picked up the slack with her two younger siblings.
DEAR HARRIETTE: I have the opportunity to take a job where my friend will be my boss. I’ve never worked in an environment with someone I was friends with prior to working with them, and I don’t often make a habit of becoming close friends with co-workers. I’m a bit wary.