‘We have spent about $5,000 – it has been incredible’: readers on going to couples counselling

It isn’t always easy, and desired outcomes are not guaranteed. Readers tell us what happened when they sought professional help as a couple

I saw my therapist weekly for two years. Then he let slip he’d been watching me. Had he crossed a line?

He said it lightly, but I was unsettled. The trust had curdled

The big idea: is couples therapy a waste of time?

Should we all be taking a leaf out of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s book?

‘An experiment in ritual humiliation’: would a month of rejection therapy make me fearless?

In theory, approaching strangers with bizarre requests, destined to be refused, makes you a better person. But can soul-crushing embarrassment really strengthen your character?

Talking sense: why a stiff upper lip can never be good for our mental health

Research suggesting that not going on about our emotions is a valid treatment for depression feels like a backwards step

My cheating boyfriend told me he was a sex addict. Was it a disorder – or just an excuse?

When I found out my partner had been lying for years, my whole world shattered. Did calling it an addiction mean I had to forgive him?

What’s the secret to giving good advice? Wait until you are asked for it

The internet is groaning with tips, hacks and cures but not everyone with a problem actually wants you to solve it

Susie Orbach: ‘Body uniformity is out of control – there’s no right way to have labia!’

The psychotherapist on body hatred, what’s changed since she wrote Fat Is a Feminist Issue – and the smell of her clients

You can’t just cheer up people who have depression. There’s a key role for antidepressants

The NHS is planning to offer patients art, music and gardening classes rather than antidepressants. Nice idea, but it won’t work, writes psychotherapist Lucy Cavendish

Therapy taught me I can always change my mind. So I did, and stopped the therapy

I was a sceptic, but it did help me get to a point where I could move on. It is a luxury, especially for Black people. I was lucky to do it, says writer Niellah Arboine