in that case, I would lay off the "tough love" responses. It takes a lot of finesse to be able to give that without offending people. I have a master's degree in counseling psych, and am 60 years old to boot (i.e., have been around the block a few times), and I STILL struggle with how to respond to some people at times without offending them. It's an art.
In addition, a "tough love" response was completely inappropriate in this particular situation