It's so much easier to count our disadvantages than tot up the mitigating circumstances that generally outweigh the despair.

The great advantage of being human is that we can employ rational thought and resolve to change our circumstances.

For most of us, when our 'dreams' - I use the word with reservations - came true, and marriage and motherhood became a reality, the romcoms, like horoscopes, swiftly lost their allure.

Life is rife with frustrations, jealousies and, on occasion, an overwhelming sense of its injustices, but it's a big mistake to let such negative sentiments rule our lives and dictate choices.

As a species, we tend to be doers, forever shaping and reshaping the world to better suit our purposes.

We invest less in our friendships and expect more of friends than any other relationship. We spend days working out where to book for a romantic dinner, weeks wondering how to celebrate a partner or parent's birthday, and seconds forgetting a friend's important anniversary.