Do you want to comfort someone who’s stressed? Are you looking for the right things to say to a person who just told you they are stressed? If you are, it is important to understand that people have several reasons why they could be feeling tired and overwhelmed. Hence, your responses have to capture these reasons and they must be constructed in a way that relates to their ordeal.
You don’t have to sweat it because, in this article, I have curated 20 comforting phrases for someone feeling stressed. They are inspired by a broad spectrum of stressors and events and can be used freely depending on the circumstance.
Take A Break, Would You?
“Take a break, would you?” is a good way to respond to someone who’s feeling stressed. Depending on your relationship with the person, you can use this response to instruct them to rest. This is best suited when you are either in a relationship with the person or are their superior.
There’s A Free Hug Ticket With Your Name On It
One time I was at work and my girlfriend asked me how things were going. I told her I was stressed from all the paperwork I had to do. Then, she told me “There’s a free hug ticket with your name on it for when you get home.” It made me smile and I’d heartily recommend you use it when your significant other tells you about how stressed they are. Do well to give them that hug, it’d be therapeutic.
You Look Like You Need A Massage. I Could Be Your Masseuse
You could use this response when talking to your partner or anyone who would be comfortable with you giving them a massage. The idea shows how thoughtful and caring you are. Don’t go promising massages when you can’t do them. Hahaha.
How About We Netflix And Chill While You Relax?
For some people, relaxing means seeing a movie or catching up on their favorite TV shows. I would instantly feel better when I see a series with my girlfriend. If this is something that works for your partner, you can offer to do so.
It Is High Time You Started Thinking About Yourself And Giving Priority To Rest And Sleep
This is a good response to someone who’s all about their hustle and doesn’t give themselves enough time to sleep and rest. By saying “It is high time you started thinking about yourself and giving priority to rest and sleep,” you are advising them to take care of themselves. Everyone needs to take care of their health and this is not out of place.
Should I Run You A Cold Bath? Or Make You Tea?
Another response to a partner who’s stressed is to do some acts of service. This would work especially when their love language revolves around their partners doing things for them. To this end, asking if you could do a variety of things like making dinner or preparing a bath for them, would show them how much you care about making them calm and relaxed.
Oh Dear, What Happened, Love?
Trying to find out why they are stressed is another way to comfort someone who is stressed. The goal is to know why and proffer worthy solutions. It is not every time people get stressed from work. It could be that someone is stressing them or something. Knowing what’s stressing them can help you comfort them in the best way possible.
Maybe You Need To Rest
This is an ideal response for anyone who is stressed from work. If you can confirm that what could be stressing the person has to do with work or any strenuous activity or hobby, you could advise them to sleep. Sleeping helps them to become recharged and less stressed.
You Got This. I Know You Do
Another scenario where someone might say they are stressed is when they are overwhelmed. I have heard people say they are stressed because they are unable to handle an issue. When this is the case, you can encourage and motivate the individual concerned. You could tell them how much you believe in them or something you know about them that makes them suited to overcome the challenge.
- Best believe that I know you are capable of handling the problem.
- Breathe, buddy. You can do this. I know you can.
You Need To Take Things Easy, Mate
When your buddy hits you up with an “I am stressed” narrative, you wouldn’t want to be all emotional or mushy. You can tell them “You need to take things easy, mate.” I understand the pressure, especially on young men, but they need to realize that Rome wasn’t built in a day. So, they should take things easy.
Is It Work Related? You Shouldn’t Be Stressing Over It. You’ll Figure Things Out.
For people who are engineers, creatives, and the like – I am talking about people whose jobs don’t always require manual labor but strategic thinking. They could be stressed because they are finding it difficult to make headway at their work. In such a scenario, a good response to their stressed remark would be “Is it work-related? You shouldn’t be stressing over it. You’ll figure things out.”
I Get What You Mean. We’ve All Been There Before
“I get what you mean. We’ve all been there before” is a way to show that you relate to how the person is feeling. It is a good one to use with your colleague. I am recommending only colleagues because other people may not agree with you understanding why they are stressed but for someone who works in the same industry as you, they can accept that you know how it feels.
At The End Of The Day, We Are Humans And There’s A Limit To How Much We Can Take Before We Get Burnt Out
This response is not just thoughtful but inspiring. It passes a strong message to the individual who is stressed, a message that could be pivotal in changing their work culture for the better. You can support this response with an appeal to take some time off to rest.
Thank You For Your Efforts And Contributions. I Can’t Appreciate You Enough
“Thank you for your efforts and contributions. I can’t appreciate you enough” is going to be a good response especially when someone who says they are stressed helped you achieve a task or were responsible for the success of something you were in charge of. You can use the opportunity to appreciate them and recognize their contributions.
- I can understand. Without you, I doubt this event would have been a success. Do take some time off. You need to rest.
- You don’t know how grateful I am to have you on my team. Thank you so much. Please, take care of yourself.
What Do You Do To Unwind Cause You Need To?
This reminds the person that they need to unwind to rest and it gets them thinking about how they can achieve that.
It goes a step further from just asking them to relax and unwind to getting them to tell you what they do. From there, you can push to have them do it and join them to ensure they see it through.
Don’t Go Stress Eating. I Wonder Why You Neglect Self-Care Too Much
I’ve met a couple of people who practice stress eating. They’d begin to overeat because they are stressed and it is not a healthy habit. If the person claiming to be stressed is known to be a stress eater, it’s important to advise them.
You could say, “Don’t go stress eating. I wonder why you neglect self-care too much.” The other part of the response is basically because people get stressed when they are not taking proper care of themselves.
Do You Need An Emotional Support Teddy?
For ladies, you could offer to get them an emotional support teddy to help relieve the stress they are experiencing. It mustn’t be a teddy. So, you’ll have to find out what she wants. It could be an Oreo or you. Yes, she may want a shoulder to cry on or a chest to lie on. Ask her what emotional support object she’d want if you have to comfort her for feeling stressed.
Too Much Screen Time Isn’t Helping Your Stress Levels. It Could Be A Major Stressor
A response suited for workaholics, tech geeks, and anyone who’s always on their phones or laptops. If the person fits this description, you can tell them that “Too much screen time isn’t helping your stress levels. It could be a major stressor.” Not like they wouldn’t know this already but reminding them is a good way to show you care about them. A follow-up response could be to tell them to shut down their computer, take a walk in nature, or read a book.
Can I Help You With De-Stressing?
Maybe you have ideas about how to get them feeling relaxed but wouldn’t like to be forward, this is a good response to use. By asking them what you can do to relieve them of stress, they could say something specific that would help. That way, you won’t have to suggest things that aren’t their strategy for unwinding.
- Well, I could help you relieve the stress you feel. Just tell me what you want.
- If you have an idea for relaxing, I’d be here if you need me.
Before You Go
Stress is almost a part of our lives. The only difference with stress is people have different reasons why they are stressed. Some could be stressed as a result of work, someone, or life’s challenges. These subjective causes of stress make it difficult to provide a generally fitting response when someone says they are stressed.
That’s why I curated these responses. They give you an idea of the various causes of stress and how they are relative to everyone. You can choose a statement based on the context and causes of the stress the person is going through. I am confident there are at least two responses for whatever scenario you find yourself in that involves comforting someone feeling stressed.
