You want to shut down the conversation.
It can invalidate the other person’s feelings, according to Lucas. “If someone shares with us that they are upset or hurt, and we don’t know how to respond or feel like taking responsibility for that, ‘lol’ can be a way of sort of shutting down the conversation or hoping the other person cuts it out, discontinuing the conversation,” she wrote. “It can feel vulnerable and uncomfortable to be accountable for hurting someone else, and ‘lol’You’re protecting yourself from their potential rejection.
“‘LOL’ can be used to proactively deflect a negative response,” Phillips said. She gave this example: “Hey! I was wondering if you’d like to go out sometime and grab a cup of coffee. If not I totally understand, just thought I’d ask. LOL.” If those are values of yours, mindfulness is something you may want to consider. The effects may not be as scary as you think, either.“Maybe we can really show up and be seen, and the other person can do the same, and we’ll be okay,” she added.
I have so much more to worry about right now LOL