Coming to terms with the loss of my friend Amy Winehouse, amid the media frenzy that surrounded her death, has taken me 10 yearsGod knows what I must have looked like: a bedraggled 25-year-old dressed as a psychedelic game hunter with glitter smeared a…
I love a good gossip | Hannah Jane Parkinson
Whether it’s about football transfers, relationship scandals or Westminster feuds, gossip is a glorious tool of social bondingGossip has a poor reputation (have you heard?). But I am going to argue in favour of this pastime, first coined by – who else?…
Study links too much free time to lower sense of wellbeing
Research shows there is a ‘sweet spot’ and subjective wellbeing drops off after about five hoursThe lesson of Goldilocks, that one can have too much of a good thing, even when it comes to the size of a chair, has applied in fields from astrobiology to …
‘I was sliding towards the drop and couldn’t stop’ – the writer who fell from a mountain
It is every climber’s worst nightmare. In this extract from his thrilling book about the glorious – and treacherous – Cuillin Ridge on Skye, Simon Ingram recalls the day its wild peaks almost took his lifeI had been out of signal for most of the day, s…
How a racist taunt prompted me to reclaim Britain’s countryside | Anita Sethi
A man on a train told me to go back to where I’m from – and so I did. Walking alone in nature, I felt liberated from prejudiceI was sitting on a stage inside a tent recently, surrounded by the mountains and valleys of the beautiful Brecon Beacons natio…
My kids are at war over how often to wash. The only thing they agree on? I’m disgusting
This summer, a mighty row on cleanliness broke out online, after Ashton Kutcher said he washed his crotch and armpits daily ‘and nothing else ever’. These arguments have now, inevitably, reached my bathroomIt was the last full day of a summer holiday t…
Postnatal depression is frightening, but seeking support helps the whole family | Saretta Lee
It affects up to 20% of women and can be as complex as depression at any stage of life. But support is thereThe modern mind is a column where experts discuss mental health issues they are seeing in their work“I want to be a good mother but I’m afraid. …
Electric sleep: the gadgetry tracking and hacking the way we rest
As activity tracking goes mainstream, an arsenal of consumer technology is rolling out for sleep. But how much do these interventions help?At 2.16am, I stumble to the bathroom. I catch a glimpse of myself. The light from the red bulb is flattering – I’…
Life being put on hold was just the spur this writer needed to fulfil her youthful ambition
Charlotte Northedge wrote a new novel in lockdown. She considers others who have realised the dreams of their youthI wrote a novel in the last lockdown. To be clear, it wasn’t one of those creative outpourings some people had in between yoga with Adrie…
Do as I say, not as I do: the struggle to follow your own advice
From a cardiologist with a penchant for snacks to a life coach coping with burnout, five professional advice-givers share their difficulties walking the talkIt’s easy to imagine the professionals we turn to for help are paragons of virtue. That doctors…