What I learned from a lovely woman on a packed ward in hospital

Healthy people are being forced to stay in hospital because of a lack of social care – and it’s an indictment of our current system, writes Zoe Williams

The Inherited Mind by James Longman review – a moving memoir of mental illness in the family

The TV reporter’s struggles with depression and the suicide of his father, whose own father killed himself, prompt this incisive, highly personal investigation

The unspoken agony of vaginal dryness: ‘I had to give up four jobs in four years’

Recently, there has been much more discussion of menopause. But one debilitating condition, experienced by 80% of women, remains shrouded in secrecy and misunderstanding

What would I tell my younger self if I met her for coffee? Mostly that things do get better

The trend of meeting up with your younger self has already been adopted by gen Z on TikTok – because we all need a growth narrative to keep us slogging on

‘I couldn’t be left alone with the kids’: when parental exhaustion tips into burnout

Most people with small children are worn out – but for some, the pressure of striving to be perfect parents can drive them to the edge

Wallowing in a soup of despair? Try ‘lemonading’ to buck the gloom

Linda Geddes spends a week with a clown, a comic and some toddlers to test the science behind the uplifting power of play

Health insurer Vitality is first to offer UK members weight-loss jabs

Company will give up to 20% off treatments such as Wegovy and Mounjaro through private cover

My Husband, the Cyborg review – the raging narcissism behind rich-man body modification

Susanna Cappellaro’s intimate documentary follows her spouse as he gets a body implant, the process serving to demonstrate the self absorption behind it

I worked as a triple zero call-taker for six months. It hardened my heart and changed my view of humanity

Having the saddest, harshest elements of society nipping at my heels chipped away at my progressive ideals. The line between self-preservation and dissociation began to blur

Oh, no! It takes 162,335 minutes a year to maintain my health and wellbeing

When is anyone supposed to do anything? Bathing, stretching and cooking: the relentless grind of self-care consumes 112 days of my life each year