MY LIFE WITH THE BIG O!
YVETTE HAD NO IDEA SHE WAS AT RISK OF OSTEOPOROSIS UNTIL HER 55TH BIRTHDAY
An active lifestyle has always been extremely important for Yvette Kaleel. When she wasn’t spending her time Djing or helping out at her partner’s deli, she could be found at the basketball or tennis courts.
But all that changed when Yvette turned 55 in 2018. Aware that both her mother and grandmother suffered from osteoporosis, she decided to get a bone density scan.
”YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN IN LIFE”
Despite her fit and healthy lifestyle, she too was at high risk of falls and fractures. Now, Yvette, from Botany, NSW, is encouraging others to have their bone density tested. “You never know what’s going to happen in life, so you’ve always got to be ahead of the curve for a better chance at a long life,” Yvette, now 58, tells New Idea. Osteoporosis is a serious but treatable condition where bones become thin, weak and fragile. A minor bump or accident can cause a broken bone.
The condition is more common than breast and cervical cancer combined. For Yvette, whose grandmother and mother suffered broken hips in old age, it was important to ensure she prevented the condition affecting her later on in her life.
When the bone density scan results revealed she was at high risk of falls and fractures, especially at the hip, she couldn’t believe it.
“I was shocked because I have always been fit and active,” says Yvette. “The only time I’ve broken a bone was while playing basketball in my 40s.”
It meant that Yvette needed to cut down on the high-intensity sports, and reduce the number of Djing gigs she performed at parties and weddings.
“I loved Djing,” she says. “Everyone is in a great mood, but now I don’t do it as much because carrying heavy equipment puts me at risk.”
Instead, Yvette makes sure that she walks, does weightbearing exercises and takes calcium supplements. She also sticks to a Mediterranean diet.
Now, she’s encouraging others to take charge of their health. “Most people look at me and say: ‘You’re so fit and active,’ but if I didn’t feel like I was on top of it, I would worry.
“I think more people should get tested for peace of mind,” says Yvette. “Prevention is the best medicine.”
We’re all used to looking out for our family day-today, but it might be time to consider what we can do for our loved ones when we’re no longer around. Losing a family member can lead to many unexpected costs, especially for those of us who haven’t planned ahead.
Typical funeral expenses have been growing over the years and we can expect to pay even more for something particularly elaborate or meaningful. According to Moneysmart, a basic cremation could cost at least $4,000, while a more comprehensive burial could cost $15,000 or higher1. That’s why many Australians are considering funeral insurance as a way of making things easier for their families at this difficult time.
With Real Funeral Cover, your family will receive up to $15,000* when you pass away to help pay for any unexpected costs that might arise. Claims are usually paid within one business day of receiving all the required documents, so your loved ones won’t need to worry about using their savings or even borrowing money. Plus, when you turn 85, you can choose to cancel your policy and cash out 75% of your benefit amount. Alternatively, keep your policy in place at no extra cost to you, and if you pass away (or celebrate your 100th birthday), you or your family will receive a Bonus Cover of 25% added to the benefit amount^.
Chrissey Antonio has clung onto the hope that someone knows where her little sister, Rachel, has been for the past 23 years.
Even now, Chrissey, 44, closes her eyes and lets her mind drift back to her happy life growing up in the small town of Bowen, QLD, alongside the smiling face of her 16-year-old sister.
But all that changed when her mum dropped Rachel at the movies on the evening of Anzac Day, 1998, and she never returned home.
Now, Chrissey and her family are determined to find out what happened.
“My sister is still missing, and I won’t stop until I find her,” Chrissey tells New Idea.
She recalls her sister as a teen who loved life and was her little shadow.
“Rachel and I did everything together,” she says.
“I was five years older so, wherever I went, Rachel wanted to come too! She was so chirpy and bubbly, I loved her dearly.”
The day after Rachel’s disappearance, Chrissey – who was 21 at the time and working on Hamilton Island – received a message from her mum Cheryl and dad Ian to ring home urgently.
“I just remember Mum saying: ‘Rachel didn’t come home from the movies last night,’” Chrissey recalls about the call that shattered her life.
The days after passed in a blur as Chrissey threw herself into her hospitality work as a distraction, while a huge police search for Rachel ensued.
Tracing her last movements, Rachel was seen on Queens Beach Esplanade – just a few hundred metres from the cinema. Two men came across her sitting in an elevated lifeguard’s chair. The men later told an inquest, Rachel said she was waiting for her boyfriend.
That alleged secret boyfriend was 25-year-old local lifesaver, Robert Hytch. While Rachel’s body was never found, eight months later in December 1998, Hytch was
“PLEASE COME FORWARD SO MY FAMILY CAN LAY RACHEL TO REST”
charged with her murder.
A jury found him guilty of the lesser offence of manslaughter the following year, for which he was sentenced to nine years in jail.
But that conviction was overturned in 2001, after a retrial saw Hytch acquitted.
Ever since, Chrissey and her family have been haunted by unanswered questions as to what happened to Rachel, and where her body is now.
“You live your life consumed with unbearable sadness,” reveals Chrissey, who now lives in Broome, WA.
“There’s no resolve – you can’t grieve, you can’t say goodbye. You exist in limbo consumed by a deep sorrow.
“For nearly two decades I was in denial. I knew Rachel wasn’t coming home, but I couldn’t accept it. I couldn’t believe it had happened and that I wasn’t going to see my little shadow again.”
An inquest in 2016 offered some resolve for the family.
Handing down his findings, the coroner said he believed
that Rachel was in a relationship with Hytch at the time she went missing and named him as her probable killer, fatally injuring Rachel and hiding her body.
Hytch – who was nearly 10 years older than Rachel – always denied involvement in her disappearance.
He also denied having a sexual relationship with her, even swearing it under oath.
Yet at the inquest, the coroner ruled that was a lie and that he would refer the evidence on to investigate possible offences of perjury.
The coroner added he did not make any statement, nor could it be inferred, that Hytch was guilty of an offence or was civilly liable for something, as the inquest was not a criminal trial or a civil action.
The coroner also found, the night Rachel disappeared, Hytch had left his brother’s birthday party to go hire a movie and there was a period of about 30 minutes that remained unaccounted for.
In 2018, Hytch unsuccessfully appealed the coroner’s findings in the Supreme Court.
For now, the Antonios live in hope that they will find out how Rachel died and where her body is soon.
“Anyone who knows anything, please come forward so my family can lay Rachel to rest and we can say goodbye,” Chrissey pleads.
Every year, her calendar is tinged with memorable milestones without her sister. Last month would’ve been Rachel’s 39th birthday.
To mark the day, Chrissey bakes a cake, lights a candle and talks to a picture of her sister – a precious ritual she calls, ‘Rachel time’.
This Anzac Day, Chrissey will attend the dawn service, because that’s what Rachel did on her last day alive.
But for Chrissey, April 10 is the most painful day in her calendar. It was the last time she ever saw sister, Rachel. The family had enjoyed a day shopping, followed by a swim and a barbecue together.
“Before she left, we had the biggest hug and we said: ‘I love you,’” she remembers fondly.
Chrissey has hung on to that hug and those three words ever since.
• If you know anything about Rachel Antonio’s case, contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000, or visit crimestoppers.com.au