Such a simple question, along with being such a shallow question. What's wrong? This could be answered in almost any way. If something is bothering me, I try my best to not make it obvious to those around me, but that is not always possible. Of course, if you're around friends or family and you seem down in the dumps, they're going to ask you something along the lines of, "what's wrong?" I must admit, I am TERRIBLE when it comes to my emotions, but when someone asks me what is wrong, I can't help but immediately shut down and respond, "nothing."
Sometimes, I do this simply because I don't even know what's bothering me, I'll wake up on the wrong side of the bed or I'll overthink something ridiculous and I just don't feel like explaining it, or I'm not even sure how I would go about explaining what is on my mind. What's wrong? Well, what do you mean exactly? What is bothering me or what is making me seem off? There could be so many things "wrong" technically, especially when it comes to someone's feelings and personal thoughts.
Sometimes I'll make myself feel like people don't actually care about what is wrong when they ask you, they may just be curious or nosy. Maybe they aren't actually worried or concerned about what is bothering you, maybe they are just interested in finding out. I hate it. I feel like many people can agree with this, having someone approach you while you are in a mood and asking.."what's wrong?" - It just seems impersonal, it seems careless and it seems meaningless. Of course, sometimes you don't want to talk about what is bothering you, you don't want to confront your feelings at the time and you would rather hold them in, and that is completely fine! Other times, you might want to talk it out and explain to a friend or family member what is on your mind and what is causing you to be upset, and when it comes to the short question, "what's wrong" you may feel like you can't even talk about it, because the question is so shallow and general.
If you're trying to comfort someone or get someone to talk to you about what is bothering them, try being more personal with your opening question. "What is bothering you? You're not acting like yourself," "Are you okay? You can talk to me if you need me." etc, etc. There are so many other ways to go about helping a friend or family member without asking the tiring question, "what's wrong?" Make someone feel loved and special, not a burden.
