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Dear Annie: I have been married for more than 35 years, but for most of that time, I have felt unloved and trapped. I came into this marriage desperately wanting children, and when my husband was widowed young with two little ones, I stepped in and raised them as my own. I was the one who got out of bed in the night, went to every school event...Read more

Dear Annie: There is a sad and bitter battle playing out between my two daughters, and as their mother, I feel helpless to stop it. My oldest has always been the more fragile of the two. She struggles with accountability and has often relied on family to untangle the knots of her life. Years ago, she was widowed, and though her husband left ...Read more

Dear Annie: Thank you for the work you do on behalf of the good. I often read your columns on boundaries, and I deeply appreciate your encouragement to not only set boundaries for ourselves but also respect those of others. Boundaries feel like such an important concept, yet sometimes they are hard to define in everyday life.

I often find ...Read more

I'm catching sight of, over the hill of another year, the third year of my 40s. I suppose that could be a surprise for those of you who haven't been reading this column long enough and were lured in by its title. That's right, us millennials? Solidly middle-aged.

At a civic engagement group a few weeks back, a speaker in their 20s lambasted the...Read more

Dear Annie: Families Anonymous could be a great help to many of the people who write in to you. The program is most often associated with families dealing with loved ones who struggle with addiction, but I discovered it has value in many other situations as well.

I first attended Families Anonymous because I was overwhelmed with anxiety about...Read more

Dear Annie: Thirteen years ago, I started doubting my family's place in my life. I come from a family of four boys, but only one of my three remaining brothers keeps in touch.

My oldest brother is up in years and no longer able to get around. The middle brother and his wife are the only family members who keep in touch. The last brother lives...Read more

Dear Annie: My husband and I have been married for 11 years. We've always had a solid partnership with no major issues. But lately, I've been feeling like I'm just a supporting character in his life.

He recently started a new job that he's passionate about, and while I'm happy for him, everything seems to revolve around his schedule, his ...Read more

Dear Annie: My sister, "Erin," has always been a bit dramatic, but lately it feels like she's manufacturing chaos. She's going through a divorce, and while I understand that's difficult, she's started calling me multiple times a day just to vent -- about her ex, the kids, her job, our parents, her neighbor's barking dog -- anything and ...Read more

Continuing on this most important issue for the ladies -- defensiveness -- I'm asking you to observe yourself the next time you're with a man. Are you tense, on the edge of your seat, afraid he'll try to jump your bones? My nationwide survey found that men -- most of them, anyway -- do not expect sex on the first several dates. Could it be that ...Read more

Dear Annie: I am caught in a very difficult family situation. I have twin sisters-in-law, Tricia and Tanya, who have not spoken to each other in more than 25 years. To complicate things further, Tanya and her mother have also been estranged for 24 years.

I've managed to maintain good relationships with both sisters, but things have come to a ...Read more