Can I Tell Someone They Need Therapy?

You’ve seen the signs for months: the spiraling texts, the ill-timed meltdowns, the same painful story on repeat. You care about this person. You’re exhausted by this person. And you’re starting to wonder: Can you tell them they need therapy?

The short answer is “yes,” experts agree. But the delivery makes all the difference. “It needs to happen in a very gentle and vulnerable way,” says Melissa Gluck, a psychologist in New York whose clients often ask her how to suggest that their boyfriend, best friend, or mom go to therapy.