Alex's Answer

Hi there, welcome to Ask Alex.    

Thank you for contacting us. We understand that it’s not always easy to share our worries and concerns, but we also know how important it is to talk about how we are feeling. You have been very brave in reaching out, and you have the right to get help and support.  

You have said that your mum keeps commenting on your eating habits and you wish she would stop. You mentioned that you confronted her, and she acted like she was concerned for your health but in reality, she’s only trying to make you body conscious. You say that you already struggle with disordered eating and you state your mum didn’t recognize the way her words affected you. We are really sorry to hear that you feel this way.  

All children in Ireland have a right to have a say, a right to be listened to and a right to be taken seriously in matters which affect them. We would be concerned that you have struggled with disordered eating, do you think this is something you might be happy to get support with? You might find it helpful to visit this website: www.bodywhys.ie/ as this organisation offers services to people in Ireland who need support for eating disorders and/or disordered eating.   

Do you have another trusted adult you could speak to about how you are feeling, this could be a family member, teacher, youth worker, or neighbour? If you feel you can’t speak to a trusted adult just yet, you can always contact our Childline Listening service. To reach us on our webchat service, please visit the website www.childline.ie and click on the orange Live Chat button, or you can call Childline on 1800 66 66 66 to talk about what is going on for you. We are here 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You do not have to go through this on your own, we are here to support at whatever time you would like to get in touch. 

Take care and be kind to yourself,   

Alex