When Your Best Friend Is Having a Bad Week: How to Brighten Their Day

Bad weeks happen. But when they happen to your best friend, you may be stumped on how to help them get through the yuck.

Your reaction isn’t unusual. Even if you’ve been friends with someone forever, you can’t always know intuitively what to do in a difficult circumstance. Many people experience a sense of helplessness when they’re trying to support friends who are going through a period of hopelessness.

For instance, you may encounter initial resistance if you simply ask your friend what you ca...