Honest, practical, shame-free reads on sex, closeness, and connection in the first year as parents — written like a friend who's already been there.
If you're lying awake wondering whether your sex life is over — read this first. The honest answer, what's actually going on, and the small things that help.
Newest first — filter by topic, and tap “Load more” for the rest. New pieces appear here automatically.
Tell us what's going on tonight, in your own words. We'll hand you one small, doable exercise and a ready-to-use line — no sign-up.
Small, repeatable moves. Grab one, say the line, or paste it into Regular.
Short, dated takes on new studies and dad-life stories from the first year — the ones we think you should see.
A study of 4,108 people finds couples grow apart mostly from more conflict and lost warmth — not from who does more housework.
Jul 2026 · Dad lifeA study of 943 couples finds a father's stress tracks his schedule, his support, and his relationship — not just his own grit.
Jul 2026 · IntimacyHow often couples have sex tracks their relationship stage, not how strongly they feel. The slower bedroom after a baby isn't a love readout.
Jul 2026 · Relationship scienceWhen one partner hides money and the other is honest, the mismatch alone predicts a less happy marriage and less money in the bank.
Jul 2026 · Relationship ScienceBrain imaging reveals fathers experience rapid neural changes in the first six weeks after birth—particularly in areas tied to empathy and bonding. Here's why it matters for your partnership.
Jul 2026 · Relationship scienceIn a 2026 study of 105 couples, 'mental contrasting' — picture the outcome you want, then name the obstacle — measurably improved problem-solving.…
Jul 2026 · Dad lifeA Finnish study of 1,667 families found infant sleep tracks the family's emotional climate and parenting stress — not just bedtime mechanics. The…
Jul 2026 · Dad lifeA University of Manchester study followed 10 UK couples for 5 years: dads who led caregiving became more involved parents long-term and reshaped…
Jul 2026 · Dad lifeA study of 290 families found dads doing more nighttime childcare helped mothers sleep — via relationship satisfaction, not just extra hands. Yet 75%…
Jul 2026 · Relationship scienceA 2026 study found couples happy with how they split housework report higher relationship AND sexual satisfaction. Doing your share isn't a chore tax…
Jul 2026 · Relationship scienceA new study of 1,700+ couples finds that mismatched work-life boundaries while working from home breed mutual loneliness — and push couples toward separation.
Jul 2026 · Dad lifeA June 2026 Northwestern University study of 4,290 fathers found that unpaid paternity leave sharply raises anxiety and depression risk — here's what that means if you're a new dad in the US.
Jul 2026 · Relationship scienceA 2026 Frontiers in Psychology systematic review of 13 studies found paternal postnatal depression creates distance not just from partners, but from babies too.
Jul 2026 · Relationship scienceA June 2026 study of 41,606 people across 74 countries found kindness explains ~21% of relationship satisfaction — and seeing your partner as kinder than you wins.
Jul 2026 · Dad lifeNorthwestern University study: no paid paternity leave = 58% higher anxiety risk in new fathers. Published in American Journal of Public Health, June 2026.
Jul 2026 · Relationship scienceA 2025 study tracking 59 couples from pregnancy to 15 weeks postpartum found that new parents consistently underestimate their partner's attraction — even though the pull is still there.
Jul 2026 · Dad lifeA July 2026 study of 1,484 people finds personality similarity doesn't predict friendship satisfaction. What does: seeing your friends as kind and steady. New-dad exhaustion quietly kills that perception.
Jul 2026 · Relationship scienceA huge new study says men's desire peaks around 40 and doesn't track testosterone — meaning context, not age, is the real dial.
Jul 2026 · Relationship scienceA June 2026 longitudinal study tracked 238 couples at 1, 6, and 12 weeks postpartum. Marital satisfaction and postpartum depression don't just correlate — they fuel each other in a loop.
Jul 2026 · Relationship techLanguage matching between partners predicts relationship stability. A 2025 meta-analysis confirms digital couples tools actually work — and now AI can analyze the patterns in your actual messages.
Jul 2026 · Relationship scienceA new study of 1,317 adults found 57% worry about their sex drive — most about low desire or mismatched desire with a partner. Parenting tops the list of explanations.
Jul 2026 · Relationship scienceFemale-breadwinner couples with children are 49% more likely to separate — but not for the reason most assume. A new study of 544,911 couples points to division of labor, not gender norms.
Jul 2026 · Relationship scienceAn event-sampling study of 952 fans across five countries found sexual desire rose and fell with daily well-being — not the schedule.
Jul 2026 · Dad lifeA new WashU study finds modern fathers are doing more caregiving than ever — yet judge themselves harshly because they're now measured against two standards at once.
Jul 2026 · Dad lifeA March 2026 study in JAMA Network Open tracked 1M+ Swedish fathers and found depression spikes 30% at the one-year mark — not in the newborn haze.
Jul 2026 · Dad lifeA study of 1.1 million Swedish fathers finds depression builds slowly and hits hardest around month 12 — not at birth.
Jul 2026 · Dad lifeA new study of 719 fathers found a hidden chain from childhood trauma to depression in the toddler years — running through masculine role stress and emotional shutdown.
Jul 2026 · Dad lifeA 2026 global survey of 5,000+ fathers found 9 in 10 say hands-on caregiving is a deep source of happiness — even as 3 in 4 lose sleep over money.
Jul 2026 · Relationship scienceNew research from the University of Calgary finds long-term couples don't need matching personalities — they align on honesty and openness, and almost nothing else.
Jul 2026 · Relationship scienceNew research identifies 3 honesty profiles in couples. 48% are 'Strategic Soothers' who stay quiet to avoid conflict — less satisfied than partners who don't.
Jul 2026 · Relationship scienceA 10-year Danish study of 1,784 divorcing couples found high-conflict splits led to 28% more prescriptions and 13% higher hospitalization risk — starting 2 years before the split.
Jul 2026 · Relationship techA 2026 experiment in Frontiers in Digital Health compared 14 days with an AI chatbot vs. a real peer: only human connection reduced loneliness. What that means for couples.
Jul 2026 · Relationship scienceA new study: relationship addiction is a coping mechanism, not devotion. Anxious attachment feeds it — but emotion regulation is trainable.
Jul 2026 · Relationship techA new APA survey: 77% of psychologists see patients using AI for mental health, and 97% warn it can reinforce your worst thinking.
Jul 2026 · Relationship techA 2026 CHI Conference study finds AI romantic relationships follow the same emotional arc as human ones — intimacy, trust, dependence, even breakup.
Jul 2026 · Relationship techA study published at CHI 2026 found that people's emotional bonds with AI assistants evolve exactly like human relationships: intimacy, trust, attachment — and painful breakups. 1 in 3 young men has already been on a virtual date.
Jul 2026 · Relationship techA July 2026 study from CHI Conference found that AI romances evolve through intimacy, dependence, and breakup-like endings — just like human relationships. 1 in 3 young men has already dated an AI.
Jul 2026 · Relationship tech1 in 7 partnered young adults regularly chat with an AI romantic companion — and most keep it secret. What the new numbers mean for real couples.
Jul 2026 · Relationship techFirst-year students: two weeks with a supportive AI companion did nothing for loneliness; only real human conversation moved it. Reported by the APA.
Jul 2026 · Relationship scienceA 2026 family-therapy paper (Sabey et al.): new dads feel real fear, but masculine socialization reroutes it into irritability, shutdown, or work.
Jul 2026 · Dad life105 fathers via an Australian perinatal service arrived later and in worse shape than mothers — more self-harm ideation, relationship and money stress.
Jul 2026 · Dad lifeA 10-country study of 5,000+ people: parenthood doesn’t lift daily happiness, but it raises your sense of meaning. Why that’s the right trade.
Jul 2026 · Relationship science226 couples over 3–4 years: we overestimate how anxious our partner is — by projecting our own stress. She probably isn’t pulling away.
Jul 2026 · Relationship scienceA US/Spain study: relationship quality and financial security each independently predict better health. Both matter; they don’t trade off.
Jun 2026 · Men’s mental healthGrow Therapy survey of 1,534 dads: 78% more open than their own fathers, yet only 20% would tell their kids they went to therapy.
Jun 2026 · Relationship techMatch: 47% view AI in dating negatively — but 64% want it for the hard parts. Where we draw the line.
Jun 2026 · Dad lifeState of the World’s Fathers (5,000+ dads): meaning, money stress, and how the stress leaks into your relationship.
Jun 2026 · Men’s mental healthAJPH study of 4,290 fathers links paid leave to dads’ mental health — and what to tell your partner.
Jun 2026 · Dad lifePostpartum Support International: 1 in 5 fathers report depression or anxiety in baby's first year, and in men it rarely looks like sadness. Why dads miss it — and what helps.
What we're building and shipping at Regular.
With your permission, Regular reads the signals you choose to share — sleep, activity, cycle and stress — so its nudges match how depleted you both actually are. Smarter, with less guessing.
Apr 2026 · iOSRegular launched on iPhone on April 7, 2026 — free, no account needed to start. Tap to install.
Stuck on something the blog doesn't cover yet? Tell us. We read every request and write the ones we hear most.