My W reacted that way sometimes too, though how I delivered it mattered(s)...if I was truly meaning it empathetically, then it was okay.
If I was annoyed, not REALLY meaning it, maybe some sarcasm laced in...or was a "cookie-cutter" response to her...then she felt the way your W does.
Our W's know us VERY well, especially the non-verbal and also tone of voice things..seems they are very much more attuned to that stuff naturally, than us guys...so my question is...how do you deliver it? Be honest with yourself here...if a "canned" response, then W WILL pick up on it, guaranteed.
That said, yes, it is easy to over-use it, they DO catch on...lol.
Some alternatives I use:
That must be tough...
You have so much going on, wow...
I have no clue as to what that feels like (this is especially good for things I REALLY have no clue about, like hormonal flux and such).
Everyone's sitches are unique, so you have to test and figure out which things work in your sitch, and keep them REAL...nobody feels validated by a canned response, delivered as a canned response...ya know?
Make up your own, you can do it! T^2
In the depths of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer. - Albert Camus
Uncertainty is the very condition which impels people to unfold their powers.-Eric Fromm
