You say “sorry” so often it’s become verbal white noise that follows you through every conversation, every interaction, and every relationship in your life. What started as politeness has morphed into ...

People apologize for things that don’t actually need an apology. It happens all the time. Someone apologizes for laughing too loudly or for taking up too much space in a conversation. The habit runs ...

Apologizing is polite, but over-apologizing chips away at your confidence, boundaries, and emotional well-being. Therapists say many of us say “sorry” when we’ve done nothing wrong, reinforcing guilt ...

Allysa Seely won gold in the triathlon at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics. Illustration: Dan Goldfarb / The Athletic; Lintao Zhang / Getty Images Editor’s note: This story is part of Peak, The Athletic’s ...