It can be really irritating when you are dealing with mountains that seem huge to you (even if they are just about invisible to others) and someone wants to complain about things that seem trivial in comparison. One thing is to try to keep in mind that those things that seem trivial to you just might be their mountains. We can't really compare because we all experience things differently. But if you are not in a position to be able to deal with it, maybe your best strategy would be to just tell them that you aren't up to it at the moment, and either refer them to someone else or make an appointment to talk about their struggles later. These girls are closer to being adults than they are to being children, so they probably can understand that you are stressed and have your own problems. With younger children it might be different.

I have the same problem with a slow fuse. I can simmer under the surface about something until it just festers and a trivial thing weeks, months, or years down the road can cause it to explode. Yelling and screaming seems like a really bad thing to me too - maybe avoiding that stuff contributes to being slow to anger, not standing up for yourself, holding it in, and not being able to let go of it. Here, I guess we have to recognize that people have different styles, and take responsibility for our own feelings.

<font color=orange>"If a light beckons to you, follow it. If it leads you into the quagmire, you'll probably find your way out of it again; but if you don't follow it, you'll be plagued for the rest of your life by the thought that perhaps it was your star." Friedrich Hebbet</font color=orange>