Good question. I have wrestled with the same thing.<p>I have found that the literal interpretation of &quot;How are you?&quot; can be countered with a rough summary of your internal emotional&#x2F;mental machinery by way of an emphatic grunt or groan. &quot;Meh.&quot;, &quot;Woo!&quot;, &quot;Ugh.&quot; are a few good places to start. Get creative, do some homework.<p>Remember this is a very basic, mammalian level trait. This is after lizard brain stuff, but before primate brain stuff. We don&#x27;t need a lot of words for this particular relationship transaction. Have fun with it, but don&#x27;t stress it. The person asking the question is certainly not stressing it.