Consiglio: If someone has trouble communicating or expressing themselves, give them multiple choice options so they can express themselves with a single letter rather than always explaining themselves.

I have a friend who is really bad at addressing issues and tries to avoid drama, especially when he wants space. He can go days leaving me on read which can feel like he doesn't care or doesn't want to be friends, and I'm always unsure whether I should continue to send him funny memes to cheer him up, let him know I'm there for him, totally leave him alone, etc., so it causes me a lot of stress not knowing what he wants.

Last night he finally explained that sometimes he just feels zoned out and unable to hold a conversation because of it and doesn't know how to or doesn't have the energy express that when he's like that. Today I texted him with options to pick from – “A. I'm in the mood to talk B. I'm not in the mood to talk but don't mind being messaged /snapchatted or C. I'm not in the mood to talk and I would like to be left alone.”

He responded with C and I said okay, I'm here if you need it, and left it at that. He then change it to a B a few hours later, and is now at an A. Now it's the easiest thing for him to tell me what he needs without needing to form the words himself, he know he can just send me one letter and I'll know what he needs and respect that. Even though intentions are good, asking someone “what do you need or want right now?” can be overwhelming in and of itself if they have a lot going on.

You can even add other options like “D. I need a little extra reassurance/love” or “E. I want to be mindlessly distracted.”