During our couples counseling session, Ann was asking for something, and Mark responded with “We’ll see.” Ann viscerally reacted to his statement but wasn’t clear what she was responding to. I pointed out that “We’ll see” is a dismissive response. It’s not clear that Mark will adequately consider Ann’s request.

Instead, I encouraged Mark to respond differently, with responses like, “I’ll consider it.” or “I’ll think about it.” This subtlety of language reflects Mark staying open to Ann’s request rather than shutting it down. At least Ann felt heard.