Tools and reflections for understanding, expressing, and managing intense or fluctuating emotions.
Moving Beyond the Myth of Perfect Innocence Right, let’s talk about something that doesn’t seem to get talked about nearly enough. Autistic people need accountability too. And before somebody starts clutching their pearls, I’m not talking about abusing children or punishing somebody for being autistic. I’m talking about parents recognising that their autistic child is…
There are plenty of perimenopause symptoms that nobody warns you about. The random rage. The anxiety. The insomnia. The feeling that your body has suddenly decided to freelance without consulting you first. But none of them frightened me quite as much as brain fog. Before perimenopause, I prided myself on having a sharp memory. I…
The Diagnosis You Never Saw Coming Imagine this. You’re 38. Your second marriage has just limped over the finish line. You’ve had more career changes than proper holidays, and your Saturday nights now involve doom-scrolling with a drink strong enough to remove varnish. Then one Tuesday afternoon, a doctor drops a bombshell. ADHD. Autism. Dyslexia….
If you’ve been following my recent explorations into life with ADHD, you’ll know I’m endlessly fascinated by the strange crossroads where hormones and neurochemistry collide. Perimenopause, however, doesn’t politely arrive with a leaflet and a herbal tea. It storms in like an exhausted woman carrying six shopping bags, forgetting where she parked the car, while…
The Woman He Fell In Love With Is Still There There is a very uncomfortable conversation that more couples need to have. Not every affair begins because somebody “stopped loving” their partner. Sometimes it begins because one partner stopped understanding them. Or worse still, stopped trying. There seems to be a recurring pattern happening quietly…
From someone currently wondering how “spontaneous passion” became “absolutely not, I’ve just cleaned the kitchen.” There was once a time when sex felt exciting, playful, connecting, and occasionally athletic enough to qualify for a Fitbit achievement. Fast forward to midlife, and many women are now staring into the hormonal abyss wondering why the very things…
There was a time I dated someone who ticked every red flag box. He owned a snake, which already felt like the universe issuing a polite warning. He believed hay fever was a government scam and quoted controversial “thinkers” like sacred scripture. Looking back, it all seems painfully obvious now. At the time though, I…
Let it go, they say.Yeah, easier said than done, I say. When someone pokes the bear in you, there’s a moment you try to stay calm, to breathe, to remember your affirmations and resist the urge to write a strongly worded text. You tell yourself you can handle it. But if that same person keeps…
You’ve decided it’s time to stop drinking, or at least stop leaning on weed to soften the edges. You’ve got willpower, a plan, maybe even a shiny new journal with motivational quotes. But somehow, two days later, you’re staring at an empty wine bottle or wondering why there’s another half-smoked joint in your ashtray. It’s…
Ever met someone and thought, “Oh, they’re definitely autistic”, only for their professional assessment to come back with a polite-but-firm “Nope”? It happens far more often than you’d think, and the reasons are fascinating, frustrating, and occasionally absurd. Let’s talk masking, ADHD imposters, and the curious world of the “almost-autistic”. The Diagnostic Plot Twist Autism…
