ArcaMax

Dear Eric: I’ve been in a great relationship for 10 years. We dated prior to marrying other partners and then reunited after those marriages ended. We’re both in our 60s.

While we don’t live together, he did assist financially, often without asking. I rent a home owned by my extended family; he would stay over twice a week.

He moved a �...Read more

Dear Eric: I have been married to my husband since 2018, and we dated for a year before that. I had written in my dating profile “No Trump supporters” and my guy was perfect – a democratic socialist. We shared our progressive political views.

Somehow, due to the excesses of woke culture, particularly in academia where he works, and what ...Read more

Dear Eric: I have read a lot about remote work but have never seen anything about the people left in the office. My responsibilities require that I am in the office every day. My direct supervisor is 100 percent remote, and the other supervisors are remote at least half the week.

Several of my coworkers are full-time remote and the others are ...Read more

Dear Eric: My 50-year-old-son spent the night with another woman one year ago. His wife told him to leave the house after reading his cellphone the next day. My son and his wife were divorced within eight months, as my former daughter-in-law wanted.

My son knows he did the wrong thing by cheating on his wife. He knew he caused pain.

After ...Read more

Dear Eric: I am writing to you from Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

I am the primary caregiver to my mother. She has had serious health issues that made the use of a wheelchair necessary.

I was OK with stepping up to care for her, and told her so, too. I have a mild disability (cerebral palsy) that prevents me from doing more for my mother compared ...Read more

Dear Eric: I'm 82 years old. I live in a retirement home where I’ve made two close friends, Wilma and Janet.

Out of all of us, Wilma’s health is the worst. Her eyesight has taken a turn, and her hearing isn't what it used to be either.

Janet and I have tried to get her to visit her doctor (especially about her arthritis), but she is highly...Read more

Dear Eric: I’m part of a group of six women who get together every three months for dinner to catch up on our lives. We rotate on who decides where to eat. We have been doing this for four years now.

My question revolves around eating with GLP-1 users. There are now four women in the group using GLP-1s. Two are diabetics, two use it for ...Read more

Dear Eric: A few years ago, my then-wife and I had an ugly fight that my daughter and mother witnessed. In that fight I did something I promised I'd never do, which was name call.

I've been called names and was badgered long before and lost my cool. I meant the harm I caused my now-ex-wife and was finally happy the marriage was coming to an end...Read more

Dear Eric: My husband of more than 20 years has a brother. They have a toxic relationship, yet love each other. They would talk on the phone every day.

They live a long distance from each other, and I am grateful for that because whenever they are together, the brother gets drunk and they fight, physically. The brother will provoke him by ...Read more

Dear Eric: Our son recently went through a heartbreaking and contentious divorce. There is a young child involved and joint custody has been determined.

Our contact with the former spouse is nonexistent although we regularly care for, spend time with, and dearly love our grandchild.

I have been struggling with what to do with the many photos ...Read more

Dear Eric: We recently traveled to a nearby city to visit my mother. While we were there, Mom’s friend Helen stopped by for a visit. We have met Helen before and know her to be a hugger.

My 16-year-old daughter Missy, in order to avoid the inevitable hug, stationed herself on the far side of the dining room table but Helen, not to be denied, ...Read more

Dear Eric: I am 62 (F) and my husband is 65 (M). While our older children have good jobs and work hard for their families, our youngest child, well, doesn't.

Our child can't seem to hold a job, getting laid off or leaving them. He has been unemployed, once again, since June. And now we found out that his wife is getting laid off at the end of ...Read more

Dear Eric: I’m the oldest of three. My middle sibling has routinely been to the home of our youngest sibling to pick up a niece for childcare. This middle sibling recently shared with my parents that the youngest sibling’s home is in a state of unsafe disarray.

The home has always been cluttered but apparently, it’s gotten to a point of ...Read more

Dear Eric: I have two brothers with storied pasts from 60 years ago. My older brother had a daughter when he was a teenager. Only I know this. He is now deceased. Should I tell his family?

My younger brother molested my niece (my older brother’s daughter) over an eight-year period. His wife doesn’t know this and wonders why he has no ...Read more

Dear Eric: I have been friends with a woman for about 12 years. We have many shared interests and have had fun “adventuring” together. When I met her, she was married but has since become widowed.

Her relationship with her husband was “cringe-worthy” from my perspective. She was always in charge, told him what to do and how to do it, ...Read more

Dear Eric: I’ve been friends with a wonderfully quirky woman for decades. We’ve known each other since we were very young children. I frequently invite her to various family events, especially holidays, such as Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas because these tend to be big celebrations in my family.

Unfortunately, over the last couple of ...Read more

Dear Eric: I am 75 years old. My wife and I have been married for 45 years. My wife suffers from treatment-resistant depression and/or bipolar disorder. My wife has been undergoing treatment of various kinds for 30 years without success.

Mental health professionals and close friends have told me that my wife is damaging my mental health and ...Read more

Dear Eric: My mother-in-law's Christmas card always includes a top 10 list. It mainly revolves around family gatherings and grandkids. A few years back, her list included my husband's two brothers and their families but no mention of us and our three amazing kids.

We are always hosting because we live closest to them but somehow, she only ...Read more

Dear Eric: I enjoy one to two glasses of wine in the afternoon. My grandson, five years old, was told by his parents that alcohol is poison. He knows that two of his relatives died from alcohol abuse.

My son requested I not drink when we visited them and I complied. When the family came to my house to visit, I had a glass of wine and my ...Read more

Dear Eric: My older sister and I have always had a complicated relationship. I was the “golden child,” which she (rightfully) resented.

In recent years she has recounted “memories” of our family that invariably paint me and our mother in an unflattering light. Once she mentioned in passing a time “when you were a drug addict in high ...Read more