[He's quiet, listening to her, then shakes her head.]

I know. But it's like before, you know? Either they'll go away on their own or I'll have to work through them, probably a mix of both. It's not as if you're useless, this is just a problem no one can really help with.

...I did come here to talk about some stuff you can help me work through, after all. [Quietly, revealing some of his reasoning now.] I'd just rather cover you first, since it sounds to me like yours are actually mostly positive.

Rather lead off with good news, you know?