Dear Therapist: How Can I Get My Stepdaughter to Dump Her Dead-End Boyfriend?
He doesn’t seem willing to commit, and she needs to move on.
Dear Therapist
Lori Gottlieb guides readers through the ordinary difficulties of human life
Dear Therapist: I Won’t Marry Someone With a Mountain of Debt
After learning the full scope of my boyfriend’s finances, I don’t know if I should continue the relationship.
Dear Therapist: We Set a Deadline to Decide About Marriage, and We Still Don’t Know
It’s been almost two years; am I wasting my time?
Dear Therapist: My Daughter’s ‘Brother’ Is Actually Her Father
After 30 years, I want to tell her the truth, but I don’t know how.
Dear Therapist: Can I Cut My Mom Off From My Children If She Won’t Seek Therapy?
She hasn’t been a great parent to me, and I don’t want her repeating those patterns with my future kids.
Dear Therapist: How Do I Hold Boundaries With My Sister at Christmas?
I don’t want a relationship with her, but my parents want us to make up.
Dear Therapist: My Brother-in-Law Is a Thanksgiving Freeloader
Do I have to invite him this year?
Dear Therapist: I Don’t Think I Can Accept My Boyfriend’s Past
Seeing photos with his ex-wife and kids pushed me over the edge.
Dear Therapist: We’re Cutting My Husband’s Parents Out of Our Lives
How do we explain the estrangement to our kids?
Dear Therapist: I Don’t Know How to Help My Best Friend Through Her Divorce
She’s making some unhealthy choices, and it’s hard to watch.
Dear Therapist: My Daughter-in-Law Is Posting Nasty Things About Me Online
She seems to find fault with everything I do.
Dear Therapist: My Daughter’s Boundaries Are Preventing Us From Having a Relationship
I have felt for many years that she has kept me at arm’s length, and it seems to have worsened recently.
Dear Therapist: My Dad Is Trying to Force His Way Into My Life
I’ve told him that I don’t want to talk to him, but he won’t leave me alone.
Dear Therapist: Why Can’t My Wife Pretend to Like My Family?
I feel like I am stuck in a fight I don’t want to have.
Dear Therapist: My Husband Secretly Donated Sperm. Now There’s a Kid.
I feel betrayed and angry that he kept this from me for so many years.
Dear Therapist: I Can’t Turn to My Mom for Support After My Dad’s Death
I don’t want to burden her when she’s going through such a difficult time, but I need to talk to her about my grief.
How to Show ‘Wise Compassion’ to Struggling Loved Ones
Being truly supportive of someone who is in pain requires strength, patience, self-knowledge, and discipline, “Dear Therapist” writes.
Why In-Law Relationships Can Be So Challenging
Tough conversations provide opportunities for pain and conflict, but also for growth and healing, “Dear Therapist” writes.
The Paradox of Grief
Loss often feels utterly isolating, but seeking out connection and support can help you find a way forward, “Dear Therapist” writes.
12 Pieces of Advice for Better Parenting
Parent-child relationships are constantly evolving, and as children grow, “Dear Therapist” writes, parents have to recalibrate what their role is.
9 Pieces of Advice to Help You See Relationships More Clearly
In some cases, “Dear Therapist” columns help us understand a situation from another person’s point of view; in others, they give us the language we need to name a situation.
Dear Therapist’s Guide to Dealing With Regret
Moving forward doesn’t mean leaving the past behind—it means figuring out how to make sense of it in the present.
Dear Therapist’s Guide to Love and Relationships
Talking honestly and openly won’t necessarily save a troubled relationship, but doing so can clarify whether one can and should be saved.
Dear Therapist’s Guide to Starting Over
Change can bring on a mixture of feelings; compassion is how you navigate them.
Dear Therapist: I Can’t Accept My Father’s Death From COVID-19
I was not there for his last breaths. I was not there for his last words. I’m trying to combat my guilt.
Dear Therapist: Christmas With My Divorced Parents Is Getting Harder
Every holiday season, my siblings and I divide our time between them.
Dear Therapist: I Was the Other Woman
I know I sound naive, but this wasn’t like a “normal” affair.
Dear Therapist: Should I Give My Adult Children More Money?
They’re both angry at me, and I want to mend our relationship.
Dear Therapist: My Parents Won’t Let Me Tell My Brother I’m Gay
How can I be open and honest with him when he doesn’t know who I am?
Dear Therapist: I’m Shattered by My Husband’s Sexts
They’re many years old, but they’ve totally upended my world.
Dear Therapist: I Had a Great Relationship With My In-Laws. Then Everything Changed.
They are judging me for not being a good mom, for not having a job, and for not losing my pregnancy weight fast enough.
Dear Therapist: Should I Just Accept That My Relationship With My Mom Is Beyond Repair?
I’m getting married, and I want her to be a part of my life.
Dear Therapist: My Boyfriend Is Sending Me Mixed Signals
I am incredibly worried that he’s not on the same page as me about moving our relationship forward.
Dear Therapist: My Sister-in-Law Said the Most Painful Thing to Me, and I Can’t Let It Go
She told me she would never want a child like my daughter.
Dear Therapist: My Daughter’s Family Asks So Much of Us Without Giving Anything in Return
Any time I want to talk with my daughter about an issue between us, she tells me she doesn’t have time and it’s not a priority for her.
Dear Therapist: My Boyfriend Wants Me to Destroy My Precious Scrapbook From My First Marriage
He seems to think that because I don’t completely hate my ex, I must still love him.
Dear Therapist: I Am a Single Man. My Daughter’s Friends Aren’t Allowed to Visit My House.
I have extended a standing invitation to her friends to visit for playdates or sleepovers, but none has ever come.
Dear Therapist: I’m Having an Affair and I’ve Never Been Happier. Should I Confess?
I feel incredibly guilty and am worried that if we come clean, we will lose the respect of our children and become pariahs in our community.
Dear Therapist: My Mom Won’t Stop Pressuring Me to Get Better Grades
I’ve wanted to address this with her for a while now, but I’m afraid she’ll scold me.