Some people think it is a disease. Some people do not know what to think of it. But we know what it is: it is a skin condition, fragile skin. I have EB and I and my friend Alice are going to tell you all about it.
Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB) is a group of genetic skin conditions which causes the skin to blister at the slightest touch. There are three main types of EB: Simplex EB (which I have), Dystrophic and Junctional EB which are worse. Simplex is the mildest and Junctional is the worst.
Blisters are formed by friction or small rips to the skin. They are like balloons that fill with water apart from the water is fluid and the balloon is skin. It gets bigger and bigger until it gets popped with a special needle.
Simplex EB is the most common form of EB with 70% of the people with EB were diagnosed with Simplex. It typically forms itself a blistering itself to the hands and feet. In another of simplex skin blisters can occur all over the body. As you get older, the blisters donât occur as much as you know what causes the blisters (seams in clothes and rough surfaces) and you can avoid this from happening (wearing seam-free clothes under seamy t-shirts or just in general).
Dystrophic EB is the second most common with 20% of the people with EB being diagnosed with it. It can be inherited (like Simplex) or not. When the blisters heal, it can leave scarring leading to contraction to the joints and narrowing of the oesophagus. Often the inherited type of Dystrophic EB is less severe and it can lead to an almost normal life. Of course it wonât completely heal. People with Dystrophic EB have a high chance of developing skin cancer before the age of 35, this can be quite frightening for people with this type of EB.
Junctional EB is, of course, the least common type with only 10% of the people suffering with EB have it. It is the most severe type of EB as it is fatal in infancy as only few babies survive past their third year; therefore this is a life-threatening condition. The milder form of Junctional EB isnât life threatening however it can cause life-long pain and a disability.
dEBra is a charity that helps support families that have EB and they also do some amazing research. They give families advice and organise events so families with EB can come together and meet up.
My name is Rebecca and I have Simplex EB. My skin is getting better each year but I still do everything that is necessary. 1-2 times a day, my mum checks my skin and pops any blisters that has formed during the course of the day/night. After she has popped the blisters, she applies some cream to the skin to help the skin. I wear seam-free t-shirts under my school uniform and at the weekend I wear seam-free clothes. Every year I go to London, to Great Ormand Street Hospital, to get a check-up and gat advice from the dermatology department.
Thank you for reading. I hope this has given you a brief idea about Epidermolysis Bullosa.
Rebecca and Alice (Year 6)
Recently, Newcastle have been in horrific form getting only three points from a possible twenty four! Mike Ashley is sure to be disappointed with this. Will the board of directors question whether McClaren needs to be sacked?
McClaren has had one of the worst records at the club playing 31 games: he has won 7, drew 6 and lost 18. In this reporterâs opinion, McClaren has had nine months to prove himself and he hasnât done a very good job at it.
He has spent a whopping fifty million at the club and still no performance. At the end of it all, it wonât be the squad members being sacked: it will be McClaren. If his players are not performing he could well lose his job.
Report by Finley, age 12.
In international news, a dog which had been stuck on the ice since the 29th of February has been rescued from a frozen lake! The dog had ran away from other people who had tried to rescue him but this person succeeded. The dog was rescued by aircraft and is now safe!
By Georgia (Age 9)
Do French raps help you to learn French?
French can be a very hard subject so I wanted to know: can raps make it easier? I talked to Miss Saidâs students to see if they thought that raps made French easier. They thought that it helped them to process French vocabulary, although they did say that they sometimes got the songs stuck in their heads! I asked them if they do rapping for any other subjects and they said that they have. My final question was if they preferred French raps to the normal methods of teaching and it was a resounding yes from all the students.
Miss Said told me that she doesnât just use rapping in French, she also uses it in Spanish but has plans to use it in other subjects such as maths, science and geography, too. Finally, I got to see them perform and they were very good!
By William (Aged 11)
NHS leaders are warning that hospitals could end up over-crowded on Thursday as they struggle to release patients because of the junior doctorâs strike. The NHS managed to cope well on Wednesday, the first day of the strike, after the Doctorâs walkout from 08:00am. However, NHS England said the second day of the 48-hour walkout in England was expected to be more demanding. Over 5,000 operations had to be cancelled.
Emergency cover has been provided during the walkout, which ends on Friday morning. Consultants, nurses and midwives have all been working in hospital as normal. GP surgeries havenât really been affected. On Wednesday over half the number of junior doctors expected to work did not turn up because of the strike. The latest walkout is the third, but the first to last 48 hours.
By Harry (Age 12).
Depression is a very deep and sensitive subject to most people. Iâm sure most people will have experienced depression whether from a friend, family member or even yourself. Sometimes it can go so far that people self-harm or even take their own lives, as at the time it seemed a better option than life. Doctors often prescribe antidepressants to help people with depression as they make them feel happier and help most people get back into a relatively normal life.
Lots of things can lead to depression. It can be a result of lots of stress or bad experiences. It can also run in families, but some people are just naturally prone to it. Whatever the cause is, 1 in 4 people will experience some kind of mental health issue over the course of one year so if you are feeling down, you really aren’t on your own. Depression can happen to anyone, no matter who you are. It also affects people of different ages.
Depression is a real illness with real symptoms, and isn’t something you can just snap out of. Some people donât understand this and can sometimes provoke depression if they donât realise the symptoms in themselves or in someone else.
Here are some of the common symptoms:
- Sadness, hopelessness and low moods that last weeks at a time
- Getting very little or no enjoyment from life, particularly from things that you used to enjoy
- Lack of motivation, even for small everyday tasks
- Lack or loss of self-confidence and feelings of worthlessness
- Feelings of anxiety
- Poor memory, difficulty concentration, inability to sleep
- A change in appetite and weight loss or weight gain
- Loss of interest in friends, family, school, college or work
I think I’m depressed…
There are lots of ways to help you get better:
- Talk to someone you trust. It’s best to speak to your family if you can!
- Eat right: balanced, fresh, and most importantly green. Green veg may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it may help
- Exercise
- Quit alcohol, drugs, cigarettes and detox the mind. It’s time to think straight
- Most importantly, see your GP who’ll have lots of advice. They might also recommend you see a counsellor or therapist. These experts help us figure out what’s gone wrong, and how to put things right.
Remember you are not alone!
Georgina and Eve (Year 8)
On Monday night, the chantry Year 7 and 8 girlsâ team participated in a football tournament. The team played three games against Newminster Middle School, Ponteland and Richard Coates.
For the first game they played very well but sadly Richard Coates got an early goal. However, Chantryâs defence and midfield made sure they didnât get past again.
In the next game, Chantry played their rivals, Newminster! In the first half, Chantry were holding up well getting a lot of shots in and putting the Newminster goal keeper under a lot of pressure. In the second half, they played great, tackling every attacker and doing good strong passes up the pitch.
In the final game, Chantry didnât let any attackers get a shot on goal and well deservedly got two fantastic goals! The team deserved a win and showed great resilience. They will hopefully be playing like this in the next game in a few weeks.
Ailidh D. (Year 7)
Donald Trump has won two more states on his march to be the Republican nomination for the White House. So the big question is: has he killed off Marco Rubioâs hopes of the white house?
Speaking to Marco he said, âThe voting in Mississippi, Michigan, Idaho, and Hawaii donât have the same importance as the other electoral dates in March. However, lessons can still be learnt from this.â (BBC News)
Some of the European nations have expressed their thoughts on Trump. This picture, taken in Dusseldorf earlier this month, is what Germany think!
Harry J. (Year 8)
