Dear Janice, my lover promised to leave his wife and kids three years ago, however there was never a right time. Finances, illness, kids too young, elderly parents. He was finally ready to leave when we suddenly went into lockdown a year ago. He explained that he couldn’t leave his wife to cope on her own even although he moans about her all the time, so do you think he will ever leave? SD.

Dear SD, show me the guy who doesn’t moan about his wife and I’ll move in with this mythological creature myself.

This pandemic lockdown must have seemed like a gift from the Gods to your lover. The pressure to create more feeble excuses to stay disappeared when lockdown was imposed and bought him at least another year of not having to conjure up excuses.

You see, there will always be a sick parent, a child’s interest, a wife’s breakdown, a financial disaster, etc, so how long do you give him the courtesy of your time? At least three years have gone by and you have remained optimistic. Yes, he moans about her, but given the challenges last year has brought, they are still together as man and wife and you are still hanging in there like a spare tyre in the boot of a car. Always there…… just in case.

This is such a waste of your life and before you know it, you’ll be past childbearing age, and will no doubt resent all he has in his life that you have missed out on.

Difficult as it is, you must break ties and start planning your own future. Holidays may soon be on the horizon, weekends away, join new groups and start to have plans for your future without a man who is already committed. Your confidence is probably at an all-time low with this situation. So, change.

Put yourself first and realise your potential and all the wonderful things you have to offer someone who can reciprocate fully. Second best will always be demoralising, frustrating and lonely.

Dear Janice, my husband and I have worked from home together since March last year and I’m now at breaking point. I feel like I have a shadow as every time I turn around, he is there. We used to get on so well and have a great laugh together but now, most days I just can’t even look at him. Any suggestions? Hannah.

Dear Hannah, I reckon if we did a poll around the globe, chances are the majority of people in your situation would feel the same way. You both need a break from each other and as you’re not isolated on a North Sea oil rig together or part of Elon Musk’s SpaceX mission, you should be able to create some sort of distance between you.

Enjoy breakfast and lunch at separate times, go walking with your friends, leave him at home, and vice versa. Take turns at doing the weekly shop separately too, and there no harm in watching telly in different rooms a couple of nights a week.

Get the old Saturday night vibe going again. Make an effort to glam up, hair, nails, dress (which you probably haven’t worn in a year), savour your favourite meal and a bottle of wine and enjoy the pre-pandemic fun-loving couple you used to be. Hopefully then, the daggers can remain in the cupboard and you’ll actually ‘miss’ each other enough to enjoy being together again. Good luck.

Dear Janice, three bottles of wine and half a dozen shots later, my flatmate and I ended up sleeping together and it’s now very awkward. We keep trying to avoid each other but with nowhere to go and living in a small flat it’s impossible. I’m pretending it didn’t happen and so is he. Should we leave it at that? Becky.

Dear Becky, since neither of you appear to suffer from amnesia and even the most inebriated of people have flashbacks, there is no point trying to pretend this drunken romp didn’t happen.

The tension between you must feel like Mount Vesuvius ready to erupt. Now I don’t know if that’s because you both had a great time and neither of you wants to admit it in case one of you didn’t, or you want to keep each other in the friends’ zone but take the bull by the horns and address this situation, preferably before you pop another cork! Surely, it’s an easier solution than flat hunting!

Dear Janice, my husband has had three parking tickets since Christmas. I see it as a complete waste of money and laziness on his part to find a suitable parking space, while he just laughs it off. I could accept that, but he went off on one when I bought us a new toaster. It doesn’t seem fair. Liz.

Dear Liz, at least he admits that he’s got the tickets and is not hiding them. (so far).

He has no right to chastise you for buying a household item when he is being so frivolous with cash, which I agree is unnecessary. So, make it clear that for every penny he needlessly racks up, you will spend the equivalent on yourself, makeup, clothes, whatever. Seems only fair in my books, in fact, I’d be hoping for another fine!