DEAR SOMEONE ELSE’S MOM: I think my boyfriend is beautiful, and I tell him that often, and have since we started out together in college. Even then he was beginning to lose his hair, but it was less obvious then than it is now. His thinning hair didn’t bother me then, and it doesn’t now. But it clearly bothers him, and whenever he is out and/or with people other than me and our immediate families and a few of his oldest friends, he constantly wears a baseball cap. He even wears one at work, where most of the other guys do too at least.

We have started talking about getting married, and I have this picture in my mind of him wearing a baseball cap at the wedding. That doesn’t bother me as much as how his balding makes him feel.

What can I do to convince him it really isn’t a big deal to be balding? --- LOVE HIM AS HE IS

DEAR LOVE HIM AS HE IS: Your boyfriend’s thinning hair may not be a big deal to you, but it clearly is to him. Unlike graying hair, which can be easily addressed in most cases, hair loss is a more complicated issue for many people.

If he’s open to the idea, you could help him explore medically sound options to slow down or prevent further loss. If he isn’t open to that route, then I believe by continuing to reassure him that you’re happy with him just as he is and going along with his cap-wearing, you’re doing what you can to bolster his confidence and allowing him to pursue his own self-image enhancement needs.

DEAR SOMEONE ELSE’S MOM: Last fall I was in a really bad place mentally, emotionally, and physically. I won’t list everything that was going wrong for me, but it was enough that I could no longer see all the good stuff in my life. I tried to kill myself by swallowing a whole packet of allergy meds. My brother found me all messed up and got me to the hospital. I was admitted and ended up getting the help I needed.

In my parents’ religion, the one I grew up with, suicide is a sin. So instead of getting any help from them after my attempt they started treating me like a criminal. Thank God my brother and friends have stood with me, but it hurts like hell to feel like my mom and dad continue to judge me and blame me for the state I was in.

How do I convince them their support would mean a s##tload more than their judging does? --- COULD USE THE SUPPORT

DEAR COULD USE THE SUPPORT: Rather than being able to step into someone else’s shoes, it’s easier for some people, like your parents, to turn to beliefs they’ve held all their lives to try to deal with difficult events. It doesn’t necessarily mean they don’t care. They just don’t know how else to respond.

If you’re still receiving mental health services, which I’m guessing and hoping is most likely the case, it might be helpful to see if you can arrange a family counseling session with your provider so your parents would have a chance to ask questions or at least get some guidance and advice from a professional trained to handle situations like the one you’re all currently facing.

Be prepared for the possibility this one step won’t be enough to completely change their thinking, but at least you’d have an opportunity to open up with your parents about what you’ve been dealing with, the pain that caused you to take such a drastic step, and how their support of you could make a huge difference in your recovery.

DEAR SOMEONE ELSE’S MOM: While both my mother and my mother-in-law questioned if it was the right thing for me to use cloth diapers instead of disposables for my son, my mother has come around, and has even gotten really good at using the cloth ones on the days she babysits.

My mother-in-law, on the other hand, refuses to use them and keeps buying and using disposables on the days she watches my son, which kind of pisses me off. She keeps saying the disposables are better for his skin, but I think she just doesn’t want to take the extra steps needed to use cloth diapers right, especially changing them more often than disposables have to be changed.

What do I say to get my mother-in-law to get onboard with the cloth diapers? --- WANT TO KEEP ALL CLOTH

DEAR WANT TO KEEP ALL CLOTH: I get your wanting to be consistent in the type of diapers used for your son, but I also don’t think it’s worth going to war with your mother-in-law over her using disposables, particularly if she’s footing the bill for them and they’re what she’s most comfortable using.

There are advantages and disadvantages to both types of diapers, and in recent years, more environmentally friendly disposables have been hitting the market. Perhaps a decent compromise would be for you to suggest one of these options to your mother-in-law, or for you to provide a supply of them yourself.