Big Bird is big again, finally. It was a long week for the internet’s favorite yellow bird who spent days grappling with an existential crisis that sent social media spiraling. So during that emotional time, Elmo decided to do a wellness check on the not-bird app, X.

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“Elmo is just checking in! How is everybody doing?” Elmo asked the internet.

“Not good,” users answered back en masse.

Barely two months into 2024, and the internet has trauma dumped on Elmo. What was supposed to be a friendly check-in turned into a virtual therapy session as users on X spilled their woes to the beloved Sesame Street character — who is canonically only 3 years old — and lamented why life isn’t life-ing like it used to.

The people are struggling with rent, bills, heartbreak, and a looming presidential election between two guys who seem extremely out of touch with voters. As these posts show, Elmo caught us at a really bad time:

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Even celebrities and the President of the United States got involved in the mass mental health discussion.

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Did Elmo ask for 50,000 quote tweets trauma dumping on him on a random Monday? No. Was it a necessary check-in? Yes. To his credit, Elmo doesn’t seem to be too bothered by it.

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“Wow! Elmo is glad he asked! Elmo learned that it is important to ask a friend how they are doing. Elmo will check in again soon, friends! Elmo loves you,” Elmo posted on X.

But now the big question is has anyone asked how Elmo is doing? We’ll circle back when the internet does.

Mashable