There is someone you miss. Maybe it is an old friend you lost touch with. Maybe it is someone you were close to who moved away. Maybe it is a person you cared about romantically and things ended and you still think about them more than you probably should.
You have thought about telling them. You have probably started the message more than once. But telling someone you miss them requires a specific kind of vulnerability that is easy to talk yourself out of, because the risk feels asymmetrical. What if they do not miss you back? What if it makes things weird? What if you come across as someone who cannot let go?
Here is the thing. Most people, when they receive a message that says I miss you from someone they once cared about, feel warmth before anything else. The fear of how it will land is almost always bigger than the actual landing.
Say it simply
The longer you try to make the message before saying the actual thing, the more awkward it gets. A long preamble before "I miss you" makes it feel like you are building up to a confession rather than just saying something true about how you feel.
Simple and direct is less vulnerable-feeling than it sounds. "I've been thinking about you lately and I just miss you. That's it. Hope you're well." That is a complete message. It says the thing, it asks nothing back, and it closes without pressure.
Give them an easy way to respond
The reason people hesitate to say they miss someone is often less about their own feelings and more about not wanting to put the other person in an uncomfortable position. You can remove that discomfort by ending the message in a way that makes any response feel natural.
"No need to respond, I just wanted you to know" takes all the pressure off. They can respond warmly if they want to. They can let it sit without guilt if they need to. Either way you said the thing you needed to say and gave them the space to receive it however they are able to.
Do not over-explain why you are sending it now
People often feel like they need to justify the timing of a message like this. "I know it's been a while but I saw something that reminded me of you and I just..." The explanation adds self-consciousness to a message that works better without it.
You do not need a reason to miss someone. You do not need to explain why you are telling them now. You just miss them and you are saying so. That is reason enough.
When it is a more complicated situation
Sometimes missing someone comes with a complicated history. An ending that was not clean, a friendship that fell apart for reasons neither of you fully resolved, feelings that were never quite settled. In those cases the "I miss you" message needs a little more care because it is carrying more weight than the words themselves.
unsaidit can help you write this message for whatever version of complicated your situation is. You describe who the person is, what the history is, and what you actually want to say, and it gives you something that handles the complexity without making the message feel heavy.