Writing about the parts of motherhood and work that rarely get said plainly

If sitting still makes you anxious, the problem is rarely discipline. Here is what self-pressure does to rest, and why the standard you are holding may not have a stopping rule.

The first year holds more than joy. A plain look at postpartum anxiety, what it sounds like in an ordinary week, and the point where it is worth getting help.

Coping well in public can hide a great deal. How to recognise the cost of functioning at a high level, and what therapy does about it.

Returning to work after a baby is usually framed as logistics. Often it is closer to a change of identity, and it deserves to be planned that way.

Progress in therapy is easy to miss from the inside. A few concrete signs that the work is doing something, and what to do if it is not.

What the first appointment involves, what you are asked, and what you are not obliged to talk about yet.