ArcaMax

Dear Readers: Recently, I printed a letter from "Sad and Frustrated Beyond Words," who was at her wits' end with her husband, who has hearing loss but refuses to get help. I told her that she's right that her husband should get his hearing checked but added that until he's open to seeing a doctor, she should focus on her own mental health. I ...Read more

Dear Annie: This is an issue I imagine many people are having. Sometimes my family members post things I disagree with online. Many times, I've found myself typing up a comment, only to decide against clicking the "submit" button. I really don't want to get into arguments with loved ones about politics, so I refrain from saying anything. I ...Read more

Dear Annie: When my youngest son graduates high school, I plan on leaving my husband.

My husband, "Bill," and I have two sons. My husband has refused to discipline either of them. He's always allowed the elder son (age 20) to curse me out and make my life a living hell, as well as bully his little brother. Bill has often been dismissive and ...Read more

Dear Annie: My husband has gained about 15 pounds in as many months. "Robb" has been a naturally thin person all his life, or at least in the 10 years I've known him. I know he realizes he's gained weight, because he's mentioned how his clothes aren't fitting well anymore, and recently his brother visited and gently teased him about how he was...Read more

Dear Annie: I'm at my wits' end, and I really hope you can help. I love my children, and I love being a mother, but my youngest seems to want to make that as hard as possible for me. My son is a senior in high school, and I fear he is going down the wrong path. He has always struggled in school, but I've always gotten him tutors; he's always ...Read more

Dear Annie: I hope you can help me with a friendship problem I am having. A group of six or seven of us get together for birthdays and other events. We also do things individually. One in our group, whom I interact with regularly, and I were attending an event where I mentioned we would stay for only a half-hour. I lost track of time, only to ...Read more

Dear Annie: I'm feeling stuck. Recently, my boyfriend of two years and I have been looking at new places to move into together. It's been an exciting time, and I keep daydreaming of our future -- marriage, kids, nesting, chore charts, the whole thing. However, a wrench has been thrown into our plans. An old co-worker let him know about a great...Read more

Dear Annie: For the past few months, my phone has just about exploded with calls from telemarketers and scammers. I am at my wits' end! No, robot, I'm not past due on my bank payments. I don't want a free stay at your beach resort in Panama. And I'm not going to send money to you to "protect" my identity. These people have gotten so good that ...Read more

Dear Annie: My daughter and her best friend are 30. When her friend was 12, she lost both her parents. She has been like part of our family since then. She came home last year with a beautiful baby. Her husband is stuck in his own country awaiting a visa. My daughter baby-sits daily for her, and they are both here almost daily. She is a ...Read more

Dear Annie: Recently, I missed a large birthday party for a close family member. I was not aware of the party until several weeks later, when other family members asked where I was that day. My answer was that I had not been invited and knew nothing about it. I was then promptly told the invitation had been on Facebook. It is as if I am ...Read more

Dear Annie: My daughter has grown up in the blink of an eye. It seems as if I was just introducing the ABCs, and now she's reading Shakespeare in school. We talk every day about her classes and activities, and I also make sure we discuss underage drinking.

When I was young, conversations about alcohol consumption were along the lines of "Don'...Read more

Dear Annie: I've read so many stories in your column about terrible in-laws. I'm sure most in-laws think they are wonderful and justify their behavior. My daughter is getting married next fall, and I don't want to be one of those people. I would love to see some guidelines on being the mother-in-law people wish they had. I'm sure others would ...Read more

Dear Annie: I came to the United States back in the late 1980s. My husband at the time suddenly abandoned me and my two children. We entered a legal separation agreement in 1990 and eventually divorced in the early 2000s.

During this period, I supported myself and my two children without any child support or help from my ex-husband. I was not...Read more

Dear Annie: I am a 26-year-old gay man who has recently entered a new relationship after being single for nearly four years. I'd kept my distance from dating until I was positive I found a man who was looking for the same kind of life I have been looking for -- a life of commitment and honesty so we could build a future together. I have been ...Read more

Dear Annie: I'm in my late 30s. I've read the many letters you've printed about how thank-you notes have gone the way of the dodo. I have a different angle on this complaint.

Let me preface this by saying that I am not perfect in this realm. It took my wife and me forever to get around to sending thank-you notes after our wedding, and I think...Read more

Dear Annie: My mother is in her 80s, and I love her very much. At her age, she has earned certain privileges. And I understand we all have our little quirks that might annoy others.

The problem is my mom doesn't wear clean clothes. It started out that she would wear a certain outfit a couple of times before washing. Now, however, every outfit...Read more

Dear Annie: I am trying to handle a delicate situation at the office. A man I work with has very poor hygiene and is an all-around slob. The guy has no respect for anyone, including himself. He often comes to work without combing his hair, and many times he smells as though he hasn't showered in days. He has some other unclean habits at the ...Read more

Dear Annie: My wife is pregnant with our first child. She's due in a few weeks and recently asked me to get a vaccine for whooping cough (Tdap). I got the vaccine.

However, now she is talking about everyone who will be around the baby getting the vaccine, including my parents. I can just imagine me telling (not asking) my mom to get a ...Read more

Dear Annie: "Susie" and I are long-term friends. We've known each other for 40 years. My husband and I moved to another state a few years ago, and Susie subsequently followed me. I introduced Susie and her husband to another friend of mine, "Linda," and Linda's husband. We enjoyed many good times together, the six of us.

As time went on, ...Read more

Dear Annie: As hard as it is for me to talk about this, my problem is that I suffer from addiction. I envy alcoholics, drug addicts and smokers because they have access to medications to help them stop. But that is not the case for me. I have a sexual addiction and have struggled with pornography addiction. I called a couple of agencies in the...Read more