Stages
Margot Robbie's Ackerley name change sparks
Margot Robbie legally changed her surname to Ackerley after a decade of marriage, a move that has ignited a wider conversation about choice, tradition, and
Latest Relationships news
Difficulties
Sense and Sensibility Adaptation Mirrors Gen Z's Housing
A new film adaptation of Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility reframes the novel's themes of financial precarity and sisterhood for a generation grappling
Difficulties
Guardian Blind Date Miklos Minnie Bull and Last date outcome
A blind date at The Bull and Last in London ended with mutual respect and good conversation but no romantic spark, with Miklos rating the evening a 9/10
Family & structures
Online Abuse Targets One in Three UK Women, Report Finds
A Refuge and EVAW report reveals 36% of UK women experience online violence, with rates soaring for younger and LGBTQIA+ women.
Family & structures
How to spot love bombing in friendships and family ties
Relationship experts explain how excessive affection and attention, known as love bombing, can overwhelm and deplete individuals in any close relationship
More to read
In focus
News
Compulsive sexual behaviour signs and causes
Experts clarify the difference between a high sex drive and compulsive sexual behaviour, outlining the psychological triggers and signs that indicate a
Stages
Religious women more receptive on dating
A new study finds women's religious beliefs influence their swiping behavior on apps like Tinder, with more religious women showing broader initial
Skills
Study finds attachment anxiety marks severe
New that while emotional regulation issues are common in both at-risk and clinical love addiction, a sharp increase in attachment anxiety
Difficulties
Clinical psychologist launches human-led
Dr Patapia Tzotzoli has founded My Triage Network to combat the fragmented mental health support system. The service uses expert clinical judgement, not algorithms, to match individuals with the right therapists.
Family & structures
Anger Can Be a Good Emotion for Relationships
Psychologies magazine reports that anger, often misunderstood, is a vital emotion that can foster assertiveness and protect wellbeing in relationships when
Endings
Shared music taste beats personality match
A new study finds romantic partners share far more similar musical tastes than personality traits or values, with this shared preference modestly linked to
Skills
How small annoyances trigger stress and damage relationships
Psychologists explain why minor daily irritations can spiral into significant stress, harming personal wellbeing and relationships, and offer strategies
Endings
Screen Time and Child Development Form a Two-Way Street
A new study finds the relationship between using screens to soothe children and their cognitive development is often bidirectional, varying significantly
Profiles
Active Listening
United States (as a formal concept in... · 1940s to 1950s (as a formally defined and...
Apologising
Concept present in all human cultures · Ancient philosophical and religious texts...
Asking To Move In
Interpersonal communication · Navigating a significant relationship...
At Home
Established couples, new couples · Planning, creativity, resourcefulness
Badoo
Social discovery and dating · Mobile app (iOS, Android), Web version
Becoming Exclusive
Two people dating non-exclusively · Clear communication
Becoming Parents Together
Couples considering or planning to start... · Long-term planning and mutual support
Bumble
iOS, Android · Dating and social networking
Data and guides
More guidance
Difficulties
Female Brain Changes Differ in Puberty, Pregnancy
A new study finds puberty and pregnancy trigger similar widespread gray matter loss in the female brain, while menopause temporarily pauses typical
Difficulties
Men Overestimate Women's Objectification Rates, Study Finds
New research reveals men estimate young women experience sexual objectification more frequently than women themselves report, challenging assumptions about
Family & structures
Empty nest can unmask hidden ADHD symptoms
The loss of family structure when children leave home can expose long-hidden ADHD traits in fathers, such as procrastination, time blindness
Difficulties
Financial Coach Shares 8 Ways to Ease Money Talks
Financial coach Sara Jane Maxwell outlines eight strategies for couples to discuss finances with less stress, addressing shame, communication styles, and
Stages
Blind Date Ends With Hug, Plans for Second Meeting
A Guardian blind date between Joe and Jade scored an 8 and a 9, ending with a hug and exchanged numbers. They discussed Doctor Who, the housing crisis, and debated the BT Tower.
Family & structures
Expert explains red flags of a one-sided
Counsellor Georgina Sturmer and psychologist Michelle Minnikin identify signs a friendship has become transactional and offer advice on restoring balance.
Skills
Experts warn AI risks replacing human
Psychologists and therapists warn that outsourcing emotional support, conflict resolution, and decision-making to artificial intelligence undermines human
Stages
Commitment Is a Daily Choice, Not a One-Time Promise
A relationship expert explains that lasting commitment is built through small, daily actions and choices that prioritize the partnership, especially during
Stages
Couple says open marriage strengthens their long-term bond
A couple with three children explains how ethical non-monogamy has helped them maintain intimacy and see each other as partners, not only co-parents, over
Endings
Teen's KFC Chip Gesture Wins Heart, Defines Relationship
A woman recalls how her high school boyfriend's impulsive act of sneaking out to buy her hot chips transformed her plan for a brief fling into a lifelong
Skills
Sexologist Warns Against Using Sexual Frequency
Sex and relationship experts argue that focusing on how often couples have sex is misguided, emphasizing that quality, communication, and mutual
Family & structures
Intensive Parenting Attitudes Linked to Stronger Desire
A new study finds that embracing demanding, child-centered parenting ideals is associated with a greater desire to have children, contradicting theories
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Common questions
What does Pair and Bond cover?
The relationship situation and the skill that helps with it. Stages follows the arc, Skills covers the practices reported to help, Difficulties handles conflict and repair, Family & structures covers households of different shapes, and Endings covers separation.
Is this therapy or counselling?
No. Pieces summarise what therapists, researchers and named publications have published, and none of it is a session, a diagnosis or a plan for your relationship. Abuse, coercion or fear for your safety needs a specialist service rather than an article.
Where does the underlying reporting come from?
From published research, professional bodies and named publications, credited and linked in each piece. Where the evidence for a technique is thin, the piece says so rather than presenting it as proven.
Do you publish personal stories?
Only as reported elsewhere and credited to the publication that carried them. Nothing here is a first-person account written for this site, and no reader's situation is used as material.
Who takes responsibility for an article?
They are written with automated assistance from the source material and published without a byline, with the source credited in place of an author. Nobody here is presented as a therapist.
Does the site record what I read?
No. There are no cookies, no analytics and nothing loaded from another host, so a visit to a sensitive page is not observable to anyone else.