‘After inflicting some sexual shame and negativity upon your husband for decades, it would be selfish of you and confusing for him if you were to start pursuing a lot of sexual activity now without addressing your past dynamic.’ Photograph: iStock I rationed sex in my marriage for 20 years - but since menopause, my libido has rocketed

Ask Roe: There is distance between us in the bedroom. How can I communicate my new needs?

Rob Doyle: drugs are a symptom in this book rather than a condition: an example of Doyle’s “longing for an encounter with otherness, a seeking out of astonishment for its own sake”. Photograph: Alan Betson Threshold: a magical mystery tour of mind expansion
Pat ‘the Lawnmower Man’ at Kearney’s on Convent Street in Tallow. ‘Give somebody a majority for five years and let them get on with it.’ Photograph: Mary Browne ‘What happens if I get sick?’ Health the core issue for Waterford voters
Protesters staging a die-in outside the courthouse. Members of PAIN (Prescription Addiction Intervention Now) and Truth Pharm staged a rally and die-in outside New Yorks Southern District Federal Court in White Plains. Photograph: Erik McGregor/LightRocket via Getty The new class war and the polarisation of the United States
At peak times, general Dublin traffic speeds reach about 18 km/h; at off-peak times, speeds are about 37km/h, rising during “free-flow” times to an average of 45 km/h. Photograph: Alan Betson David McWilliams: Introduce a congestion charge and make public transport free
9 Sandford Avenue, Donnybrook, Dublin 4 Want to buy a fixer-upper? Here are five things to consider first
How would Ireland cope with the loss of its corporation tax bonanza? That’s just one of the big questions that will challenge the next government. Photograph: Alan Betson Fintan O’Toole: Ten big questions for incoming politicians
Election posters for Fine Gael leader Leo Varadkar and Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin are seen on a lamppost on Merrion Square in Dublin. Photograph: Brian Lawless/PA Wire A Fine Gael-Fianna Fáil grand coalition could be what the country needs
James Lowe, Cian Healy and Dave Kearney in Leinster training. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho James Lowe enjoying Leinster’s unbeaten run, the secret to TJ Reid’s longevity
Mary Mulvihill, author of Ingenious Ireland, photographed with Dick Warner, who officially launched the book at a reception in Dublin in 2002. Photograph: Frank Miller Ingenious Ireland: A cornucopia of a book that should be savoured slowly
The feelgood factor from this period of economic growth is not evenly spread. Photograph: Getty The Irish economy is thriving but if you’re not feeling it – here’s why
Marcus Rashford walks off injured during last night’s FA Cup third round replay at Old Trafford. Photograph: EPA Rashford an injury doubt for Liverpool clash; Johnny Sexton named as Ireland captain
A Welsh miner’s wife washing her husband after work, June 1931. Photograph: James Jarche/Getty The Clean Body: A Modern History – Dirty secrets from the past
UK prime minister Boris Johnson and secretary of state for Northern Ireland Julian Smith are greeted by First Minister Arlene Foster and Deputy First Minister Michelle O’Neill at Stormont on Monday. Photograph: Charles McQuillan/Getty Images Newton Emerson: Cynical self-interest may be the making of Stormont
Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham team are into the FA Cup fourth round after their replay win over Middlesborough last night. Photograph: EPA Manchester United set for FA Cup replay; Andy Farrell to name his first Ireland squad
Steph Cha: her novel is an original story that seeks to tell two very different sides Your House Will Pay: The deadly consequences of race conflict
‘I know that my actions caused the victims a lot of trauma and distress that lasted a long time’ ‘I caused a serious road traffic accident in my youth and I feel guilty’
Munster head coach Johann van Graan: Does he have enough time, the support of his employers and a generation of early-twentysomethings who can reshape Munster in the 2020s? Photograph: Dan Sheridan/Inpho Gordon D’Arcy: Van Graan needs a new plan to get Munster back on track
“Holding a Saturday election seems enlightened, presuming that plenty of promotion is invested in the change; the fact it’s a weekend is no guarantee that people will prioritise the vote but it removes a lot of excuses.” File photograph: Frank Miller Kathy Sheridan: The country goes into election mode more fragile than we imagined
The main parties don’t have a very high opinion of our aspirations. They think we’re lying when we claim to want a better society. How do we know this? Just follow the money. File photograph: Alan Betson Fintan O’Toole: Will Election 2020 be another story of cynical politics and patronage?
The Racing team celebrate their win over Munster in Paris. Photograph: Dan Sheridan/Inpho So much for the French not caring about Europe; The cost of Euro 2020 for the planet
The Shapeless Unease chronicles Samantha Harvey’s year of sleeplessness in a stream-of-consciousness memoir. Photograph: Matt Lincoln The Shapeless Unease: an insomniac’s account of elusive sleep
Canadian Plains Indians including Sioux, Dakato, Dene And Cree, wearing traditional costumes dancing. Photograph: Tim Graham/Getty Images All Our Relations by Tanya Talaga: The mistreatment of indigenous Canadians
The Munster team after their Champions Cup defeat at La Defense Arena in Paris on Sunday. Photograph: Dan Sheridan/Inpho Munster on the brink of elimination; Galway edge Mayo in penalty drama again
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle during a photocall in London in November 2017 after they announced their engagement. Photograph: Facundo Arrizabalaga/EPA Una Mullally: Reaction to Megxit reveals worst excesses of fandom
Billy O’Callaghan writes beautifully. The Boatman and other stories: Rich prose and sumptuous imagery
Power play: the world won’t end when you state your desires out loud. Photograph: iStock/Getty I tell everyone I don’t want love and a family – but I do
Sir Hamer Greenwood, chief secretary for Ireland, inspecting the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) Fintan O'Toole: Why do we fear the ghosts of dead policemen?
A soldier burns large parcels of confiscated illegal drugs in Thailand, circa 1987. Photograph: Robert Nickelsberg/Getty Pills, Powder and Smoke: Uneasy truths about the war on drugs
Conor Dempsey in his restaurant Amuse on Dawson Street, Dublin which recently closed. Photograph: Laura Hutton Restaurant closures: Why are so many Irish outlets shutting up shop?
‘The State needs to do deals with developers, who are the only people capable of building.’ File photo. David McWilliams: The party that taxes land hoarding will get my vote
Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney and Northern Secretary Julian Smith outside Stormont Buildings with the document New Decade, New Approach. Photograph: Niall Carson/PA Wire Confrontational approach central to getting Stormont back working
Property tax is due to change in 2021. Is your house one of those facing a higher property tax bill?
Munster are set to name JJ Hanrahan, Chris Farrell, CJ Stander and Jean Kleyn in their team for Sunday’s Champions Cup clash. Photograph: Bryan Keane/Inpho JJ Hanrahan set to start for Munster; The curious case of David McGoldrick
TK Whitaker in 1975, when he was governor of the Central Bank. Photograph: Tommy Collins John FitzGerald: The shift from specialist to generalist skills in public service is a mistake
Thomas MacGreevy, a founder member of the Arts Council, and Nora Niland, the curator of the Sligo Museum, with a self-portrait in oils by John Butler Yeats. Photograph: Gordon Standing / The Irish Times Thomas MacGreevy and the Rise of the Irish Avant-Garde: Timely and succinct
Leicester City and Aston Villa’s League Cup semi-final first leg ended in a 1-1 draw. Photograph: Getty Images Aston Villa hold out for first leg draw; Sonia O’Sullivan on escaping the bushfires
Tommy Orange: There There has been widely lauded for its depiction of Native Americans. There There: Powerful debut examines life as a Native American
Men of the Royal Irish Constabulary under inspection in Derry city in 1913. The RIC existed across the whole of pre-partition Ireland, which makes it part of what some call ‘shared history’. Photograph: Hulton Archive/Getty Newton Emerson: Unionists detect huge waves of anti-British sentiment in RIC fallout
Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer watches his team lose to Manchester City at Old Trafford last night. Photograph: Getty Images Manchester City dominate at Old Trafford; Balbirnie’s tenure begins with defeat
Donald Trump’s use of Twitter and social media is not analysed. This is too significant an omission. Photograph: Robert Alexander/Getty Narrative Economics: Incomplete evaluation of impact of viral stories
Jack O’Donoghue: has always possessed the raw materials to become an established Ireland international. Or it could go another way. That’s up the man himself. Photograph: Dan Sheridan/Inpho Gordon D’Arcy: Interpros provide insight into provinces’ standing
My family think my plan to emigrate to the US is ridiculous
Tonight’s League Cup semi-final first leg kicks off at Old Trafford at 8pm. Photograph: Getty Images United and City set for Old Trafford first leg; The logjam at Ireland’s inside centre
Credit card debt is expensive. If you’ve built up credit-card debt, you need to get it under control before doing anything else. Photograph: Getty Images Five ways to supercharge your finances for the year ahead
Brendan Behan. Behan’s infamy, the cult of personality which makes it almost impossible to look at his work without seeing him. Photograph: Eddie Kelly Reading Brendan Behan: Penetrating essays on the Dubliner’s writing
Ireland’s Callum Robinson was on target for Sheffield United against AFC Fylde. Photograph: Tim Goode/PA Youthful Liverpool too good for Everton, Borris-Ileigh into All-Ireland final
Author Kylie Reid. Filmmaker Lena Waithe has acquired the rights to adapt Reid’s book for the screen, calling it ‘a poignant novel that could not be more necessary’. Such a Fun Age: Powerful debut hits the literary bullseye
The pain that emanates from neglect or perceived neglect is something that has not been heard or treated in Ireland. Photograph: Brian Lawless/PA Wire Una Mullally: This general election will be about privilege
Eddy de Wind was born into a secular, middle-class Dutch family of Jewish descent, his route to Auschwitz was somewhat unusual Last Stop Auschwitz: A timely translation of a Holocaust memoir
I suddenly heard the old man calling me. He was going, ‘Kicker! Kicker! Over here!’ and I spotted him and Hennessy, dressed up like a pair of tools in their matching camel hair coats and hats. ‘My kids are as likely to avail of a third-level education as I am a Leap Cord’
A new era is coming, much faster than the previous ones, whether we choose it or not. Illustration: Getty Fintan O’Toole: Five big questions for the coming decade
The shape of Brexit: Boris Johnson will have to choose between UK business, which wants a free-trade agreement at all costs, and a Singapore-on-Thames model. Photograph: Hollie Adams/Getty David McWilliams: Eight global economic trends affecting Ireland