A cyclist in a red jacket on a winding rural road surrounded by autumnal trees with misty hills in the background.
MEANING AND THE GOOD LIFE

Your purpose isn’t something to find, it’s something you form

In my therapy office, I’ve found that to live with greater purpose, we must think differently about where it comes from

by Ross White

A silhouetted figure on a foggy street corner with traffic lights and blurred car lights at night.
TRAUMA AND PTSD

Trafficked

Cast out by my family as a child, I was groomed by a sex trafficker. I’m finally done with cowering

Jose Alfaro, as told to Larry Lindner

Photo of flight crew in blue uniforms waving in front of a parked aeroplane on a runway, with people in the background.
CIVIC LIFE

We’re losing trust in civic institutions – can we get it back?

Historically, trust in institutions freed us to do extraordinary things. They can be flawed, but we lose them at our peril

by Ros Taylor

Ideas

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Street scene in India with people, bullock carts and shops, showing a bustling atmosphere.
CIVIC LIFE

Tolerance isn’t just nice, it’s a civic virtue we all can build

by Kiran Kumbhar

A pair of white trainers with a black tick Nike logo against a wooden floor, sunlight casting a shadow behind.
HABITS AND ROUTINES

Why some healthy habits still take so much effort

by Blair Saunders & Kimberly R More

Black and white photo of a crow perched on a post against a snowy background.
DEATH AND DYING
17

The existential balm of seeing yourself as a verb, not a noun

by Eric Jannazzo

Guides

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A person walking on a pavement, holding their head, with blue shutters and a lightly graffitied wall in the background.
COMMUNICATION AND LANGUAGE

How to talk to yourself

Self-talk is a proven way to boost motivation, think clearly and process your emotions. These tips will help you use it well

by Maryellen MacDonald

A person’s left hand holds an old family photo near documents and letters on a table; their right hand holds a pen that is positioned to write on a yellow strip of paper.
MEMORY AND NOSTALGIA

How to be the archivist of your own family

By curating your family’s stories, rituals and relics, you’ll feel anchored – and create a bridge between the generations

by Samantha Ellis

Life stories

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Vintage photo of a man with a moustache holding a baby wearing a red pointed cap and a young child
BRAIN INJURY AND DEMENTIA
2

The long goodbye

Losing my father to forgetting and my brother to silence, I grieve the living in two different ways

by Steph Auteri

Editor’s picks

A candid photo of three smiling children slightly out of focus, showing joy and togetherness against a dark backdrop.
LAUGHTER AND COMEDY
6

How to laugh more

You don’t have to wait to be amused, there are ways to train yourself to enjoy the ‘cheap medicine’ of laughter every day

by Freda Gonot-Schoupinsky

Photo of hands playing a piano keyboard, showing close-up of fingers and a ring on one finger against dark background.
PLEASURES AND PASTIMES
16

Feel free to stop striving: learn to relish being an amateur

When I rekindled my relationship with the piano and tapped into my inner amateur, I discovered a quiet room of my own

by Xenia Hanusiak

Latest videos

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Photo of a young child in a classroom touching a globe with a chalkboard in the background.
LEARNING AND EDUCATION

The idea of a ‘learning style’ is intuitive. It’s also wrong

Video by Veritasium

Photo of a person standing on a large rock in the sea during a sunset with scattered smaller rocks around.
HOME

A modern ‘cave man’ on the business of living authentically

Photo of two women sitting in blue chairs talking in a bright room with plants, a patterned table between them.
LOVE

More than laissez-faire love – demystifying modern polyamory

Photo of hands drawing a figure in a sketchbook on a splattered art table with ruler and paintbrush.
HOME

Memories of home adopt surreal shapes in a Sudanese expat’s art

Painting of a man with a dark beard and cloth headwear aiding an injured man wearing a toga in a pastoral landscape with horses and a rider in the background.
LOVE

More than just a feeling, love can guide our moral compasses

Photo of doughnuts with white icing and colourful sprinkles on a pink background.
FOOD AND DRINK

‘Sonic branding’ and other ways food marketing keeps you hooked

Notes to self

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A bearded person gently cradling a newborn wrapped in a patterned blanket by a window in soft light.
EMOTIONS

Why kama muta is an emotion worth seeking

by Hannah Seo

A dimly lit street with parked cars at night. A building has a large, vertical “HOTEL” sign illuminated.
DECISION-MAKING

For maximisers, bad choices really sting

by Richard Fisher

Popular

Black and white photo of a crow perched on a post against a snowy background.
DEATH AND DYING
17

The existential balm of seeing yourself as a verb, not a noun

In the therapy room, I’ve seen how rethinking what we are – and what it means to ‘be dead’ – can lighten our fears

by Eric Jannazzo

A woman wearing a black gown and veil, and gold and turquoise jewellery raises her harms with eyes closed; musicians wearing headdresses play drums in the background in a dimly lit setting.
ANXIETY

What rituals from the past teach us about panic and anxiety

In the sensory and communal modes of healing that people have used throughout history, there is guidance for today

by Mariem El-Kady

A man in silhouette standing against a reflective surface in an empty room with cityscape visible through large windows.
INTEGRATIVE THERAPY
4

How to stop your life playing on repeat

Those frustrating patterns you keep experiencing might be because of your schemas – and there’s a therapy that can help

by Gemma Gladstone

A person walking on a pavement, holding their head, with blue shutters and a lightly graffitied wall in the background.
COMMUNICATION AND LANGUAGE

How to talk to yourself

Self-talk is a proven way to boost motivation, think clearly and process your emotions. These tips will help you use it well

by Maryellen MacDonald

Black and white photo of two blurred men passing a weathered statue of a reclining man in a courtyard setting.
LEARNING AND EDUCATION

Why are we curious about some things and indifferent to others?

Many of us crave trivial details while ignoring much of the world around us. Research helps explain this selective curiosity

by Tommy Blanchard

A bustling food stall at dusk with bright signs advertising burgers, curly fries and sausages against a darkening sky.
GOALS AND MOTIVATION

The Ozempic era should change how we think about self-control

Struggling to manage weight can seem like a failure of raw willpower. GLP-1 drugs highlight how misguided that view is

by Matthew C Haug

A person’s left hand holds an old family photo near documents and letters on a table; their right hand holds a pen that is positioned to write on a yellow strip of paper.
MEMORY AND NOSTALGIA

How to be the archivist of your own family

By curating your family’s stories, rituals and relics, you’ll feel anchored – and create a bridge between the generations

by Samantha Ellis

A tree-lined path in autumn with people walking and sitting on benches, covered by colourful foliage.
COMMUNITY

The existential struggle between being a ‘we’ and an ‘us’

Sartre’s phenomenology reveals how a shift from subject to object (and back) is not merely a matter of grammar

by Tris Hedges

Explore: Happiness

An elderly man seated on a city street as skateboarders perform tricks around him.
HAPPINESS

Where are you on the ‘happiness curve’?

by Richard Fisher

Photo of two women in a kitchen, one peeling a potato while smiling the other focused on cooking, with a mortar in view.
HAPPINESS

We’re naturally bad at predicting what will make us happy. Here’s how to adjust

Video by The Well

Three women chatting and laughing on stone steps at night with people relaxing in the background.
GENDER

Is being single a happier experience for women or men?

by Elaine Hoan & Geoff MacDonald

A naked young woman walking on a rippled sandy beach towards the sea, clear blue water and distant islands in view.
Psyche Exclusive
FREEDOM AND CHOICE

For Lucy, surviving on a remote island was hard, but returning was harder

Directed by Jesper Wachtmeister

Photo of a red taxi with passengers in an urban setting, a sign saying “Life is War” visible in the background.
FREEDOM AND CHOICE

Relationships are important, but so is feeling free to end them

by Thomas Talhelm & Liuqing Wei

A photo of an artist in a cap and paint-splattered trousers sitting next to a large painting of a man holding his face in his hands.
PAINTING AND SCULPTURE

A rural Namibian artist reflects on authenticity in work and in life

Directed by Niklas von Klitzing and Leo Stolz

Painting of an elderly man with a beard and a young woman in a red dress, both in a warm embrace with a landscape backdrop.
MONEY AND ECONOMICS
7

How your attitudes to money could be affecting your relationship

by Johanna Peetz

Puppets with monkey faces in office attire, performing a synchronised dance in a cubicle-filled office setting, with computers and office supplies visible.
HAPPINESS
3

Humanoid animals sing through their existential angst in this madcap short

Directed by Niki Lindroth Von Bahr