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Life stages

Essays and videos offering insights into the self, relationships, cognition and neuroscience

Addiction Ageing and death Childhood and adolescence Cognition and intelligence Consciousness and altered states Family life Gender and identity Language and linguistics Life stages Love and friendship Mental health Mood and emotion Neurodiversity Neuroscience Personality Pleasure and pain Psychiatry and psychotherapy Self-improvement Sex and sexuality Sleep and dreams Social psychology Spirituality Teaching and learning Technology and the self Wellbeing

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Photo of two women hugging at an indoor event, one holding a piece of paper

videoLife stages

Grief, healing and laughter coexist at a unique retreat for widows and widowers

15 minutes

Black and white photo of a teenage girl with dark hair smoking, eyes closed, with a blurred outdoor background.

videoMeaning and the good life

Wander through the English countryside with two teens trying to make sense of the world

10 minutes

A detailed pencil sketch depicts a chaotic scene with fallen bodies, horses, and a broken chariot, with distressed figures in the foreground.

videoLife stages

What Michelangelo’s late-in-life works reveal about his genius – and his humanness

13 minutes

A serene landscape of snowy trees and hills set against a backdrop of a yellow sky and blue mountain range, with a bird flying by.

videoStories and literature

Robert Frost’s poetic reflection on youth, as read in his unforgettable baritone

5 minutes

Illustration of two people sitting on colourful hills, gazing at a starry night sky with a crescent moon.

videoAgeing and death

Demystifying death – a palliative care specialist’s practical guide to life’s end

4 minutes

A young black man wearing a blue checkered shirt and glasses is speaking into a microphone with a pop filter, reading off of a paper, against a plain white background.

videoBiography and memoir

A young autistic man’s heartfelt letter to the beloved mother he lost

12 minutes

Three columns of black-and-white photo-booth portraits of a woman making various expressions, including surprise, contemplation and playfulness.

videoWellbeing

Through a poetic account of childhood trauma, one woman reclaims her past

28 minutes

A woman wearing a maroon hat, earrings, a floral scarf, and an owl brooch, with city lights blurred in the background at night.

videoLife stages

At 14, Asal is excited about her engagement. Her relatives all have their own opinions

33 minutes

A man with glasses and two boys walk together on a city street along a row of shops.

essayLife stages

Family passages

Each new generation learns from its elders. But familial voices now compete for influence with a chorus of urgent others

Elizabeth Svoboda

A woman with long, wavy red hair and a neutral expression, seated indoors with a blurred background.

videoLife stages

An unvarnished, poetic account of a new mother’s struggle to breastfeed

3 minutes

Elderly person with short red hair looking to the left, draped in a dark background. She is posing for a nude drawing class.

videoAgeing and death

‘It’s not beautiful, but it’s interesting’ – an ageing nude model surveys her body

4 minutes

Person with short hair and striped shirt, holding a toy aeroplane, wearing denim overalls with a doll in the pocket and red goggles around their neck.

essaySubcultures

The great regression

To understand why so many adults are acting just like children, don’t blame Millennials – look to Japan in the 1990s

Matt Alt

Two people wearing helmets and high-visibility jackets riding a vehicle in a snowy environment, with headsets and microphones for communication.

videoLove and friendship

Skiing blind is a challenge – but it helps to have a loved one to guide you

20 minutes

Close-up of mixtape labelled “Nadia” showing a man in glasses smoking, another person visible on the left, text listing songs at the bottom.

videoMusic

Nick ponders the life of the mysterious girl whose used CDs shaped his teenage years

5 minutes

Drawing of an orange crab with an ice cream cone shell with sprinkles and a cherry on top, framed by a green ornamental border.

videoWellbeing

Wry animations expose the gap between anxious aspiration and real life

5 minutes

Two people with backpacks on an escalator in a brightly lit underground train station, with posters on the walls.

essayChildhood and adolescence

The parentified child

When parents cast a child into the role of mediator, friend and carer, the wounds are profound. But recovery is possible

Nivida Chandra

Elderly person wearing a tiara and a “Prom Queen” sash, smiling at a dance, with balloons and a chandelier in the background.

videoGender and identity

LGBTQ+ retirees celebrate their hard-earned self-acceptance at a belated prom night

14 minutes

Children role-playing in an office; one wears a hard hat while another checks papers. Wall has “INTEGRITY” and “RESPONSIBILITY” signage.

videoWork

‘Why does life have to be so complicated?’ A school trip to the world of work

12 minutes

Illustration of a woman looking at a happy 4-month-old baby, connected by dashed arrows.

videoPhilosophy of mind

Forget babbling and toddling – mindreading is babies’ most incredible skill

7 minutes

A young woman leans against an older woman on a sofa with floral cushions and a painting on the wall behind.

videoMeaning and the good life

To know or not to know? Lillian weighs the costs of a life-changing genetic test

10 minutes

Abstract illustration of a woman holding hands with a child, walking down a path, surrounded by colourful shapes.

videoPhilosophy of mind

Caring for the vulnerable opens gateways to our richest, deepest brain states

7 minutes

A child lying on a boat surrounded by corals, large shells, and handmade jewellery, with blue water in the background.

essaySleep and dreams

Why do we sleep?

Adults sleep less than babies. Sperm whales sleep less again. A new mathematical theory unlocks the mysteries of slumber

Van Savage & Geoffrey West

Black-and-white photo of two people tearfully embracing in a graveyard next to headstones and flowers.

essayLife stages

The fog of grief

The five stages of grief can’t begin to explain it: grief affects the body, brain and sense of self, and patience is the key

April Reese

Woman wading into a misty lake at dawn, as seen from a forested shoreline with bare trees and a wooden dock with a towel.

videoLife stages

Love evolves and death isn’t worth your worry – life lessons from an 88-year-old

7 minutes