I can't stand it when people use the "Lighten up" line. What it really means is that they can't empathise. For them it's no big deal... so therefore, as far a

I can't stand it when people use the "Lighten up" line. What it really means is that they can't empathise. For them it's no big deal... so therefore, as far as they see it, it is no big deal. . If someone truly thinks another person is taking something too seriously, and really feels that something should be said about it, then the non-patronising thing to do would be to try and explain it to the other person.