February often shines a spotlight on romantic relationships, but midlife brings profound shifts in many of our connections. Our relationships with partners evolve, our growing children become more independent, and we may find ourselves caring for aging parents. Some relationships deepen, while others fade or become overly complicated. Caregiving—especially for women—can become a central focus, requiring us to balance those demands with self-care. Many of these shifts necessitate re-establishing roles, expectations, and boundaries.

This month, I’m sharing articles and podcasts that explore these often-overlooked relationship shifts, from navigating the empty nest to supporting elders with dementia, managing our emotions, and understanding the cultural role in “relational mobility.”

Articles:

The Empty Nest has Benefits (and Challenges) for Parents –  If you will soon be facing this transition, this article may validate your worries and shed light on some of the perks of your kids launching.

How to Be a Caregiver for Someone with Dementia – Having traversed this course first-hand, and hearing from so many of you, I know how challenging caring for a loved one with dementia can be. FYI: AARP also has great articles on caring for people with other challenges.

Relationships are Important But so if Feeling Free to End Them – This one’s a bit long but it explains how “relationship mobility” (i.e., to option to end relationships) is culturally influenced and can increase wellbeing.

You Don’t Always Have to Process Your Emotions – When we shift relationships, the change is often accompanied with an array of emotions. This New York Times article by Jance Dunn offers some quick advice for that momentary insanity. (Note – I have not read the associated book.)

Podcasts

The Hidden Brain: Why You Feel Exhausted After Social Interactions. I love this podcast! Host Shankar Vedantam is as gentle in his interviewing as he is rigorous with scientific support of this topics. If you have exhausting relationships, make sure to check out the article above on the freedom to end them.

The Perfectly Imperfect Journey: The Wave with yours truly. I seldom share (much less listen) to podcasts in which I am the guest but I love the hosts – Anne Robie and Sherry Essig – and our unexpected conversation, which also includes aspects of relationships.