Relationships

When people ask about lowering their standards and whether it’s worth it to do so, the answer to that question depends on what those standards are. You didn’t describe yours in detail, so I don’t have much to go on, but in general, I’d divide what people tend to call “standards” into two types of…

It took a long time for me to come to terms with my singledom, but now that I’m here, I couldn’t be happier.

As the children of immigrants in the U.S. look for love, a question emerges: how do you deal with the idea of losing your cultural identity?

Hi Lily, Loneliness can be a real bummer, can’t it? Especially when you’re in a stage of transition — getting ready to go to college, leaving your old life behind — it’s easy to get a little anxious about what might lie ahead in the future. Take a deep breath, pour yourself a cup of tea, and let’s…

It sounds like you’ve put a lot of thought into what you want from a romantic and sexual relationship, and that’s great! It’s always good to spend some time figuring out what you want and need before you start a relationship. By knowing yourself and your boundaries, you’ve got a solid foundation for…

I’m so sorry to hear that your friends’ behavior has got you feeling this way, Liv. From the sound of things, even if they’re not doing it on purpose, they’re souring what otherwise sounds like something that’s been pretty nice for you and is also obviously a formative life experience. A first…

I think what you both should do — or more to the point, the only sound thing I think you can do — is accept each of your feelings and wants instead of trying to change them. I also think it’s important you let your girlfriend know that she should work to accept her feelings as well. I think it would…

Dear Anonymous, When I first got your question in my inbox, I was really excited to write a response, because I have felt the same as you at different times in my life. As a disabled teenager, the idea of having an anonymous hook-up felt weird, inappropriate, and simply didn’t feel like “the right…

Hi Gracie! What an honor to be trusted with your boyfriend’s first coming out conversation; picking the first person to talk to out loud about your sexuality can be very scary. It sounds like he loves and trusts you, but this revelation is raising some questions for you, which is understandable…

Hi Lisa, You can’t see it, but I’m holding a stop sign up to the computer screen right now, because you need to hit the brakes when it comes to your friend and his oh-so-generous offer to help you cheat on your boyfriend. That’s what he’s offering, by the way; it’s not sexual physical therapy if you…