During our forties and fifties a large proportion of us will go through a period of struggle. Children grow up, jobs change and the things that used to make us happy don't necessarily work anymore.

Long-term relationships, in particular, can lose their shine, leading to us feeling trapped, misunderstood and without purpose. People today are trying to make their marriages work over longer lives than ever before and it's not always easy. In the brilliant, transformative and optimistic The Rough Patch, clinical psychologist Daphne de Marneffe explores the extraordinary pushes and pulls of midlife, where our need to develop as individuals can crash headlong into the demands of our relationships.

De Marneffe uses her years of experience to address key problems that challenge us- money, alcohol and drugs, the stresses of parenthood, sex, extramarital affairs, health, aging, children leaving home, and dealing with elderly parents. Blending research, interviews, and clinical experience, and writing with wit and warmth, she proposes a path to fulfilling ourselves both as individuals and partners during these difficult years.