Single on Valentine’s Day? Try diversifying your love portfolio

In 2021 my mother lost her partner of 33 years and my year-long relationship ended. The grief we feel in missing romantic love has bound us tighter than ever

Living in a woman’s body: when my child died, my every cell hurt. She was worth every tear I shed

After almost three decades, I still miss my daughter. But losing her taught me that grief is something to venerate, not deny

Living in a woman’s body: it’s a potent myth that all women want children – but I have experienced other wonders

The lie that all women have a yearning to be a mother can feel like biological gaslighting. I’ve had a different kind of life – and it is meaningful, rewarding, joyous

Emma Thompson on living in a woman’s body: my daughter thrums with life, my mother is frail – and I’m balanced between

When three generations of my family were together I realised how, wordlessly, we recalibrate each other

Kindness is strength. But try telling that to children

The belief is rife in our culture that this great virtue is essentially a consolation prize indistinguishable from weakness, says Guardian columnist Emma Brockes

I reclaimed my birth name – and discovered why what we call ourselves really matters

For the first 25 years of my life everyone called me Mandy – and it felt completely wrong

I’m 53 and want to be able to say I love my life. How do I begin, starting from here?

In midlife and mid-pandemic, our connective ties can feel loose, writes advice columnist Eleanor Gordon-Smith. Rebinding them requires commitment

‘I thought: “Everyone knows you’re not a real mum”’ – the pain of parental impostor syndrome

Feeling like a fraud is bad enough at work but even more corrosive when it comes to raising a family. How can parents overcome damaging self-doubt?

Toxic reaction: how to clear dangerous pollutants out of your home

After tests revealed the levels of harmful chemicals in her blood, the environmental writer vowed to discover the best ways to keep her family safe

Staying up late is out. It’s very pre-pandemic. Go to sleep!

You don’t need me to tell you the health benefits of rest, you weren’t born yesterday. You were born seven weeks ago