u/BiscottiOk9245

Someone recently saw me, told me I look great and then asked what I had done to lose weight. I’m all for being transparent, so I told them first and foremost that I’m taking Zepbound. However, I emphasized that it was prescribed to help treat my obstructive sleep apnea, which is genuinely why I started it.

(and I don’t want to lie and leave out the Zepbound part)

I don’t want to hide that I’m taking medication or pretend the weight loss came entirely from lifestyle changes. It is absolutely wrong to do that and spread misinformation.

At the same time, I don’t want to present Zepbound as an easy answer for everyone or encourage people to seek it simply because they saw my results.

To be clear, I’m also not judging or shaming anyone who takes it primarily for weight loss, whether that’s for their health, confidence, comfort or simply to feel better in their body. Those are completely valid reasons and everyone deserves to make their own healthcare decisions. I’m only trying to explain my own situation responsibly without sounding as though I’m personally recommending a prescription medication.

I didn’t even get a chance to explain anything else (like nutrition and exercise) because the person immediately started talking about asking their doctor for it.

How do you answer these questions honestly while making it clear that your experience is individual and you aren’t necessarily recommending it to someone else?

I’m just trying to find out when the sports schedules will be up for the youth PIL sports for this fall? Specifically trying to find out about youth cross-country at Grant.

Does anyone know? Or can point me in the right direction? I tried to email, but I have not gotten a response yet.

My daughter and I genuinely enjoy doing things together, but when it comes to structured activities, it's important for us to have some space too.

She's a tween, and we're not really at the stage where we'd sign up for a family martial arts class together. I could actually see us enjoying something like that when she's older and in her 20s. When she was younger, we loved family yoga classes.

At this age, though, she understandably wants her own activities and her own sense of independence.

For example, she takes tennis lessons, but the adult classes aren't scheduled at the same time. It's also difficult to reserve courts because so much court time is dedicated to camps, lessons, and other programming.

I don't necessarily want to leave and run errands, and sitting around reading a book for an hour isn't ideal either because of my hips. At the same time, I don't want to hover or be a distraction to her.

Sometimes I'll do some physical therapy exercises with resistance bands while she's in an art class, but that's pretty limited. And since she doesn't play soccer or a field sport, I can't exactly go walk laps around a track during practice.

I'm curious what other parents do. Has anyone found a good way to stay active while their kid is at their activity?  Or is there an activity that generally runs at the same time for both the parent and child but not together?

My daughter is an introverted, attention-averse kid in most situations. She dislikes being the center of attention, hates having "Happy Birthday" sung to her, and generally prefers to stay out of the spotlight.

What's interesting is that she loves theatre. In straight plays (non-musicals), she often lands leading roles and is remarkably confident on stage. When she's in character, she has a strong stage presence and seems completely comfortable performing in front of large audiences.

However, once the performance ends and the focus shifts to her rather than the character, she becomes visibly uncomfortable. During curtain calls, applause, or when people compliment her afterward, she often looks awkward or distressed. The contrast between her confidence while acting and her discomfort receiving recognition is striking.

I'm curious whether there is any research on this phenomenon. Is it common for children to be comfortable performing a role but uncomfortable with personal attention or praise? Are there evidence-based approaches that help children become more comfortable accepting positive feedback, or is this generally something that develops with age?

One reason I'm asking is that I worry adults may misinterpret her discomfort as disinterest, aloofness, or a lack of appreciation when that's not what she's feeling at all.

My tween daughter is one of those easygoing kids who tends to fly under the radar. She's well-liked by teachers, doesn't cause trouble and generally prefers not to be the center of attention (won't even allow the birthday song to be sang to her at birthday parties).

The funny thing is that she absolutely loves theatre. In straight plays (non-musicals), she's often cast in leading roles and is incredibly confident on stage. Once she's in character, she has a commanding presence and does a fantastic job.

The contrast comes after the performance. During curtain calls and applause, she suddenly looks very uncomfortable. She seems awkward when people compliment her work or draw attention to her individually. For example, she also hates having "Happy Birthday" sung to her because she doesn't like being the focus of attention.

My concern isn't that she's shy - there's obviously a part of her that enjoys performing. It's more that I'm worried people might misinterpret her discomfort. Sometimes she can come across as unhappy, aloof or like she doesn't want to be there when she's actually just overwhelmed by the attention. I don't want her to miss out on opportunities because someone gets the wrong impression of her reactions.

I'm curious whether other parents have kids who are similar. Have you found anything that helps them become more comfortable receiving praise and recognition? Or is this just something that comes with time and maturity?

I want to support her and I also don't want to give her a complex by being critical of how she responds to people etc. I just want to help her in the most effective and kind way!

One of my kids is going on a Japan cultural exchange with their fifth grade class. They have been asked to bring "omiyage" for their host families.

What are some of your favorite smaller, local brands we should look at that aren't on this list?

Not interested in Salt & Straw, Jacobsen Salt, Portland Timbers, Thorns, Pickles etc. We already know about those. Interested in in learning about companies we may have overlooked etc.

Cannot bring chocolate because it will melt.

I’m a parent of a tween and I noticed that a lot of the kids don’t say thank you, even my own. I’ve taught them to do it and I’ve modeled the behavior.

And these kids’ parents model the same behavior and it’s pretty obvious have similar parenting styles.

But its like they just…don’t. In any situation.

It feels awkward, on my end, to prompt anyone so I say thank you instead and they’ll half heartedly echo but it’s rare. But it feels weird to me to say, “What do we say?” because I’ve always found it obnoxious when other adults do that.

Is this normal where you’re from?

My tween daughter and I are very different. I’m a lot more outgoing and she’s very quiet and introverted. I will go ahead and disclose that she does take time to warm up. But once the conversation has started with her, she’s pretty good about following through now. She was not before, but she’s improved a lot.

I used to volunteer at the school a lot and I started doing it again recently. I’m not even a young parent but (I think) because of my carefree, laidback delivery, the kids end up gravitating towards me. This has always been a thing ever since preschool. I don’t know why. But the kids like me for whatever reason.

Something that I’ve always found annoying though is when people would talk to me and act like my daughter isn’t there. I think it is so disrespectful.

I think that tweens are not cool. I know they’re supposed to think they’re cool at this age, but they’re all honestly kind of awkward and wish they are older than they are. Again totally normal, but I still find it annoying. But I'm nice enough to them because the world will do its job as usual and make them feel like garbage as they go through puberty.

I’m not really looking to do anything petty like put them in their place or anything like that. I actually like them otherwise. But I’m honestly pretty sick of how they treat my kid. I think my kid tries to play it off like she doesn’t care, but I know that it must sting a little.

I don’t think they’re trying to necessarily be mean, but I can’t help but want tocorrect them whenever they try to ask me a question even if it’s an innocuous question about her (like if she’s reading a certain book or something) and she’s literally standing right next to me. I always have to ask/tell them to ask her directly.

Anyone able to relate? What did you do?

My tween son loves to act but it seems that most productions youth theater puts out are mostly, if not, all musicals.

He is into straight plays and loves Shakespeare. any youth theater programs do this?

My child reads A LOT. Mostly books but also e-books and audiobooks. They are in the top first percentile in ELA. They just read so much but I worry it’s affecting them. This year alone, they’ve read over 112 books. We track on a reading app.

Are there any adverse effects by doing any of the three forms too much?

Just curious: For parents who have to work or have other obligations, how do you make your kids go to school? Obviously going to school is a must for most families.

I understand the answer is just "we just make them go" or "they don't have a choice - they just go" but what does that actually entail? Are there arguments? Whining? Etc - is it daily?