It all started when the "Sesame Street" star's X followers began trauma-dumping in his comments earlier this week when he asked how everyone was doing ... something that's taken the Internet by storm over the past 48 hours.

In a follow-up tweet, Elmo said he was glad he asked -- reminding us all of the importance of checking in with a friend. Unclear if that was Elmo's intention, but that's what it became.

Welp, Joe himself signed off on Elmo's tweet and the broader implications of what it morphed into ... retweeting it to add his own words of wisdom -- writing, "I know how hard it is some days to sweep the clouds away and get to sunnier days."

He drew focus back to our friend Elmo ... acknowledging his underlying message was spot on, "We have to be there for each other, offer our help to a neighbor in need, and above all else, ask for help when we need it. Even though it's hard, you're never alone."

Of course, Elmo's initial message sent the Internet ablaze ... with actress Rachel Zegler viewing it as a safe space for her to admit she was "kinda sad." Heck, even T-Pain commented: "That's love, pull up any time bruh ... Check in on your people."

The comments section also became a safe space for others to talk about issues as small as running out of milk for the day ... to more significant topics such as exhaustion, the 9-5 grind, and mental health in general.

One takeaway from this ... a little Elmo-tional support goes a long way. People were clearly more than ready to share their problems and then some -- they just needed someone to ask.