A person with hair up sitting at a desk facing a window, laptop nearby, with flowers and a lamp on the table.

How to overcome task paralysis

If you have ADHD or you’re stressed, tired and stuck, goal management training can help you get started and keep going

by Joe Wilner

A pink cottage with a thatched roof; a woman pushes a baby in a pram alongside a girl holding candyfloss.

What life in Denmark shows about the power of emotional safety

A deep sense of ease – what the Danes call ‘tryg’ – is a collective responsibility that allows individuals to flourish

by Ruth Aharoni Nielsen

Photo of a hand holding a lit candle in a paper holder at a night vigil, with blurred crowd holding candles in the background.
GENDER

Deciding to detransition

For two years, I lived as a trans woman – happy with my body, but fearful of the world it moved in

André Dourado, as told to André Aram

A person in glasses lying on a grey sofa with cushions, resting their head on their hand, blanket partially covering them.

How mental disorders play havoc with our motivation

by Matthias Pillny

An open album with black and white baby photos and handwritten notes in Japanese on both pages.

What is hidden in the photographs we keep of each other?

by Sawa Kurotani

A Black man in a cap and hoodie standing in shadow against a lit wall.

Black men suffer racial trauma yet are seen as the threat

by Yamonte Cooper

Guides

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Expressionist painting of three abstract figures with exaggerated features, the closest of which has a green face, against a dark background.

How to handle jealous feelings

Jealousy can be a useful, insightful emotion – if you manage it well. Get curious about your jealousy to get a grip on it

by Carla Marie Manly

An ATM in front of a poster of a woman with arms crossed.

A psychological guide to climbing out of debt

Debt is as much an emotional challenge as a financial one. Follow this therapist’s advice to create a plan that works

by Vicky Reynal

Life stories

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A man in a suit speaks into a microphone in front of a vibrant, abstract digital background; photo.

Can he teach the teachers?

The neuroscientist Stanislas Dehaene wants to bring four decades of findings on how the brain learns into the classroom. But evidence alone can’t overcome the politics in education

by Nancy Averett

Editor’s picks

Photo of two people on a rocky hilltop under a vast sky, one pointing. Snow-dusted landscape and clouds in the background.

How to rewild yourself

You didn’t evolve to live in this techno-industrialised world. Find health and happiness by embracing your wild nature

by Jessica Carew Kraft

Abstract painting of a woman with geometric shapes in pastel colours, featuring a blend of blues, greens and yellows.

What a psychiatric diagnosis means – and what it doesn’t mean

With stigma and misunderstanding surrounding mental health, it’s vital to know the benefits and limits of a formal diagnosis

by Awais Aftab

Latest videos

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A man interacts with a quirky wooden sculpture with antler-like wires on a table against a plain background; photo.

‘I take silly very seriously’ – a kinetic sculptor’s credo of creation

Video by Portraits of Another Life

Black and white film still of two people in fur-lined parkas in a snowy landscape.

Don’t reduce emotions to biology – they’re contingent and emergent

Photo of tattooed hands cutting yellow paper with a craft knife on a green cutting mat scattered with paper pieces.

Ten crafty ideas to escape the doom-scroll and start making things

Photo of a man speaking to a group seated around tables in a candlelit room, view from behind the speaker.

What happens when a Sudanese refugee lets strangers ask him anything?

Notes to self

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Popular

Two people seated at an outdoor café with red tables and chairs, talking in front of a large window.

What does it mean to have relationship ambivalence?

When a relationship provokes both strong positive and negative feelings in you, it can take a toll – here’s what’s going on

by Francesca Righetti

MRI scan of a human brain in greyscale showing detailed brain structures on a black background.

Why long-brewing physical and mental breakdowns feel so sudden

As a neurosurgeon and a son, I’ve come to see the parallel processes underlying growing tumours and stressed-out minds

by Sasi S Senga

A book club meeting with five women, some reading, others chatting on a green sofa in a cosy living room.

Want to be a lifelong learner? Don’t go it alone

The history of autodidacticism shows that learning has always been social. The right relationships open intellectual horizons

by Celine Nguyen

A cluttered archive with stacks of files in cabinets, a poster on the cabinet door, and dark ambient lighting.

When you feel moral disgust, what’s the emotion telling you?

Some actions and words provoke instant revulsion. To know if we can trust that gut feeling, we should probe why we have it

by Brandon Yip

A man in a car talking on a phone and gesturing with his hand, appearing animated or upset.

The way we talk to bots matters even if they aren’t conscious

If more and more of our daily interactions are ungracious exchanges with machines, we should expect it to change us

by HennyGe Wichers

Black and white photo of a solitary figure walking down a misty cobbled street lined by tall brick walls.

Why moving on after a breakup makes you a better person

They say time heals a broken heart. But do the hard work of moving on, and you do more than heal – you improve yourself

by Matthew Barnfield

Colourful evil eye charms and blue metal bells hanging together with a blurred background.

The evil eye is irrational. Abandon it at your peril

So many of the world’s superstitions have been supplanted by rational thinking. Why does one of the oldest beliefs persist?

by Timna Abramov

A rock band performing on stage with a large portrait backdrop of a person wearing rings and heavy eye makeup.
MUSIC

The softness of metal

Watching a seated Ozzy play his final gig, my ankle broken, I’m in tears – this couldn’t be more metal

by Keith Kahn-Harris

Explore: Wisdom

Photo of elderly women playing Mahjong at a table, laughing and engaged in the game in a cosy indoor setting.
AGEING

Why older people are happier and what we can learn from them

by Xianmin Gong & Natalie Wong

Photo of an elderly man speaking at a podium with a microphone onstage, wearing a dark suit and glasses.

James Earl Jones reads Kurt Vonnegut on why art is central to a meaningful life

Video by Letters Live

Image

How to find your InnSæi

by Hrund Gunnsteinsdóttir

Image of an urban housing area at dusk with a distant view of apartment buildings and a blurred figure in the foreground.
POETRY

Ideas and metal spark in beautiful unison for a welder-turned-poet

Directed by Callum Rice

A dirt path lined with baobab trees by water, an ox-drawn cart carrying people.
WISDOM

African proverbs provide the blueprint for a meaningful life

by Richard Appiah

Illustration of diverse people in warm tones, depicting a crowded scene with varied clothing and hairstyles.

Wisdom is a virtue, but how do we judge if someone has it?

by Maksim Rudnev & Igor Grossmann