Upside Stories Library
Stay curious
Explore our evidence-based insights on life’s big questions, transitions, and challenges for people across midlife and beyond, and those facing these themes ahead of schedule.
When Caring Becomes a Calling: Psychological Growth in Dementia Healthcare Professionals
For the nurses, doctors, chaplains, and allied health professionals who dedicate their careers to supporting people living with dementia, the rewards are genuine. So too are the challenges. This article explores psychological growth in senior health professionals working in dementia care — and what their experiences can tell us about meaning and purpose, adaptability, and what it means to truly give to another person.
The Dance of Communication: Staying connected in dementia without words
When dementia takes away speech, it can feel like connection is slipping too. But our research The Dance of Communication reveals that even without words, awareness and belonging remain.
Intensive Grandparenting: When helping Becomes a Health and Wellbeing Risk
Across Australia, grandparents are stepping up. With childcare costs at record highs and working parents stretched thin, many grandparents have moved well beyond the occasional Saturday babysit. Some are providing full-time or near-full-time care — managing school runs, meals, illnesses, school holidays, and everything in between (Baxter, 2022). This article explores the difference between enriching involvement and over-functioning — and what the research says about protecting your health and your relationships while staying connected.
Finding unexpected growth after life changing and traumatic events
Can something good really come from something so hard? The answer, backed by decades of research, is yes — though not in the way people expect. Posttraumatic growth isn't about feeling grateful for what happened. It's about the unexpected strength, meaning, and possibility that can emerge from the struggle. This article explains what the research shows — and what it might mean for you.
The Grandparent's Edge: How to Stay Deeply Influential in Your Grandchildren's Lives
You've raised children, weathered life's biggest plot twists, and built a store of wisdom that no parenting app can replicate. So why can it feel like the rules have changed, and no one gave you the memo?
The Loneliness Few People Talk About: Building Belonging in the LGBTQIA+ Community at Midlife and Beyond
Loneliness is significantly more common among LGBTQIA+ individuals in midlife and older age than in the broader population, with rates approximately 30–49% higher than non-LGBTQIA+ peers, driven by the compounding effects of minority stress, historical marginalisation, weaker kinship ties, and exclusion from both queer and mainstream social spaces. Evidence identifies the quality and composition of social connection, particularly within LGBTQIA+-specific communities, as more protective than social quantity alone. Psychological support can also help address the internal barriers that chronic loneliness builds over time.