Tamar Saperstein

Letting go and forgiving is difficult, but necessary to build security and heal old wounds that weigh down your soul.

If you're a woman, in or near your forties, and a perpetual people-pleaser, I have good news for you! You're about to enter a new stage of psychological wisdom and maturity. The people-pleasing that ate away at your sanity is going to become a thing of the past.

l long prided myself on being a "strong, independent, beautiful, staunch feminist." But then I found out I was pregnant—and everything changed.

When I was first married, I found myself constantly suffering from painful and awful vaginal and urinary tract infections. The doctor prescribed the same regimen of antibiotics for each type of infection. I’d heartily suffer through the weeklong course of medication, awaiting my pain and itch-free days to come, as the antibiotics worked their magic.