Feel sick with worry - guess whats just been found in 14dds room!

[tictocstar]

Caffeine pills and laxatives! with a substantial amount gone aswell, just tucked into a little wallet..

What should I do? approach her? Search bedroom more? Don't want to invade privacy but awfully worried about her

I wouldn't search her room any more, then you can genuinely say you stumbled across them and hopefully not lose her trust. If it were my dad I'd wait for a quiet moment and have a chat, remembering to set aside my emotions and the desire to wail 'why the hell are you doing this'. The thing is you need her to know that no matter what you are there for her in a non judgemental way.

Good luck.

I hate to admit it but I don't think I could resist the temptation of searching the room.

Safeguarding > privacy.

Also, try to keep communication open and avoid judging.

How is her eating? have you noticed any changes? Any recent weight loss or wish to lose weight? Any odd food habits or food restricting such as recently cutting out full fat food or hiding/throwing away food etc?

May be unconnected, but young people with an unhealthy relationship with food/eating/their bodies sometimes use caffeine pills and laxatives.

If the answer is yes to any of the above questions, take her to the GP who can screen to rule out any eating disorders / refer to the appropriate help if needed.

what thefirst said. This is illness of some sort and she needs help. That over-rides privacy.

I've had another quick look, taken the pills.
All I saw was some empty diet colas, making me suspect an eating disorder, her twin sisters room is full of chocolate wrappers! It's a world away!

She's always been very short and the same size as her sister however I've noticed this past sort of 5 months her sister's over taken her in both height and weight, she's also had bizarre eating habits, such as wanting to eat different food, make her own herself and just other things such as fruit for dinner. I honestly didn't think about it in this way..I feel so guilty and blind!

How distressing for you ticto. I think you need to talk to her very compassionately but calmly but I also think you need to get her to the GP asap. It could be the start of an eating disorder and the sooner you can get advice and help the bigger the chance of sorting it out before it develops further. Good luck xx

Does she try to eat at different times to the rest of the family or ask to eat her meals in her room? She may hiding food or pretending to eat more than she is.
I think a trip to the GP is needed, to discuss all this, and a possible referral to CAMHS for an eating disorder assessment. I say this as a CAMHS practitioner.

I agree safeguarding trumps privacy here. Get help for her. If you have sort of noticed this for five months you need to act soon.

Don't feel guilty, or blind. Lots of teens are good at hiding things and a determined teen can hie plenty.

I've booked her a Drs appointment for next friday morning, haven told her yet..not really sure how to bring it up, she's not been eating much at all, now that I'm looking out it seems so obvious, the way the pasta saucepan is just left untouched, how she doesnt eat breakfast because it make her 'sick' mid-morning, I'm just going to try bringing it up with her lightly:
'are you hungry'
or
'what have you had for 'meal''

..I'm so stuck, but feeling as though I'm on the right path