A middle-aged female client with no previous psychiatric history is seen in the mental health clinic because her family describes her as having paranoid thoughts. On assessment, she tells the nurse, "I want to find out why these people are stalking me!" Which response should the nurse provide?

A) This response may lead the client to feel defensive or invalidated and does not explore the client's perception in depth. B) This may lead the client to further elaborate the delusion, reinforcing it rather than redirecting. C) This response uses therapeutic communication by acknowledging the client’s feelings without reinforcing the delusion. It shows empathy and builds trust while avoiding validation of the paranoid belief. D) This response directly contradicts the client's belief and may lead to increased resistance or distrust from the client.