Hey, Cherie!

My mother is crunchy — she’s a hippie who never stopped being a hippie — and my father is pretty much the same way. They still listen to the Grateful Dead and the New Riders of the Purple Sage, we have a vegetable garden that provides us with food, and they even have an old Volkswagen microbus that we take on some family trips.

My father is a college professor and my mother is a high school teacher. I am a ninth-grader who is not as crunchy as they are, and I don’t really like tofu.

Both of my parents don’t really believe in western medicine. If I get sick, they always take me to alternative medicine doctors. That includes sicknesses like sinus infections, which I seem to get every year, and rashes. I think if I needed surgery they would still take me to a regular surgeon. Or at least I hope so.

I want to know why they can’t just take me to a regular doctor and get me antibiotics for a sinus infection. I took biology and learned that these drugs don’t help with viruses, such as colds. Why should I have to suffer through days of a natural remedy that doesn’t work?

My parents have all kind of excuses like they don’t trust the drugs, but I am tired of being sick for longer than I have to be. In fact, I will sign myself with that pen name.

— Sick and Tired

Hey, Sick!

Great letter and really interesting. Not so easy for me to answer, but I’ll take a crack at it. Warning: All medical needs should be checked with your doctor! First, I do think that parents have the right to bring their kids up the way that they choose. And this includes the kind of treatment they want when their kids get sick. It doesn’t sound like your mom and dad are the kind of fringe parents who are opposed to all western medicine, just some of the time.

My own feeling is that there is a place for natural medicine as well as a time to use conventional medicine. If your own immune system can’t beat a sinus infection, I don’t see why antibiotics shouldn’t be a main option.

You can certainly remind your parentals that many of our drugstore prescriptions come from plants and other natural sources. Yes, antibiotics can be abused, which contributes to stronger drug-resistant bacteria. But that doesn’t mean that no one should ever use them.

Hey, Cherie!

Do you sleep in pajamas? I am in seventh grade and always wear my pajamas. I live in a place where earthquakes occur; I don’t want to have to run outside in my underwear during an earthquake.

— Pajama Wearer

Hey, Pajama!

I am not going to tell you what I wear to sleep — that’s between the sheets and me. (Clever, huh?)

I do think it’s smart that you are thinking ahead to emergencies; just don’t take it too far. You don’t need to sleep inside an armored suit because a meteorite might fly through your window, or with scuba gear because of a possible sudden flood. Stay safe.

Cherie Bennett is a best-selling author of books for teens and young adults. Visit her website at www.cheriebennett.com. To find out more about Cherie Bennett and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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