A couple of recent posts have raised the question of diet. Are weight issues a symptom of school refusal?

Not so in our case Simon. My daughter had already been a SR before her weight recently crept up and that was due to her antidepressant meds. Her recent experiment with her 'diet' (as in food that she ate normally) was linked to her fibromyalgia of which chronic fatigue is a factor.i have researched at length and time and time again it is suggested that reducing /eliminating wheat/wheat containing products can improve many conditions. She did lose around half a stone or so within a fortnight but that was not the intitial intention ( although she is delighted and looks fab!).

Certainly for others weight and SR could go hand in hand as we all know how self conscious teens are anyway without having the added pressure of anxiety as our kids have.

It will be interesting to see what the others think tho'

Penny

Hi - my son as you know is nearly 15 and he is very slender - bit too much so but eats well ( wish i was the same ) One thing we have changed in his diet is caffine - he used to drink alot of coke and crave chocolate but since he has cut these out - has a little choc but def no coke he has not suffered a panic attack at all - he was having several a day and not had one for a while - he is convinced that is the answer. After mentioning this to the psycologist she said that people with anxieties shouldn't be having too much caffine - one to think about.

Hope you are all enjoying the Easter break.

Sar xx

hi Simon,

My son is a string bean and eats well - so not an issue here either. He eats a good diet as it was found he was low in iron. He has never had a coke in his life as I did ban that! he loves choc but we have to limit that as it spins him out and he goes really silly (anything too sweet will do this I think). He also drinks lots of water as the psychologist said being hydrated can help eliminate feeling 'off colour' which may impact on the anxiety. He unfortunately does not always eat his lunch at school as he seems to feel to self conscious or just can't eat? Not sure of the real issue here but it means that by the time school ends he is very cranky. I can always tell if he hasn't had his lunch. Maturity might help that one. So food an issue - but not in over weight anyway.
Linda

Hi,

My son has put on weight which he is very self-conscious about especially as he is very big on his sports. I have been worried if it is due to his anti-depressants so am interested to hear if there is a connection? he was very slim before he went on the meds. And he plays huge amounts of sport but does eat well....

Penny, you mentioned this, could it be connected? I have researched this on the internet but some people lose weight and others gain...

Sophy

Sophy, I think it really does depend on the individual. I was on meds myself a couple of years back and I too gained weight. I thought when I stopped taking them the weight would miraculously disappear- but unfortunately it didint - I had to work at it . The same with my daughter, she put on just couple of pounds at first but when her dose was upped she chunked on over a stone. She told me that she ALWAYS felt hungry, so she ate carbs, drank coke, and sugary food to satisfy her hunger. Yet a friend of mine lost about 2 stone on the same drug without dieting.
Its just like someone living on big macs and not gaining an ounce and other might gain pounds just looking at one!

It's interesting about the coke though. Since reducing her fizzy drink intake, reducing carbs and wheat and sugar not only has she lost weight but she has much more energy - (which was the whole point0 and has been less anxious and happier too. I am beginning to believe in the philosophy of 'you are what you eat'.

Penny - as i said my son has not had a panic attack since he stopped drinking coke so i am sure there is a connection. Even was he was drinking it it wasn't copious amounts but he won't have any at all now.

He is very thin - but he and his brother eat exactly the same and he is quite chubby - wish we could reach a happy medium.

Enjoy the weekend everyone

Sar xx