Vlog: Crying Is Healthy

Crying is often seen as shameful or a weakness.  But, it can actually be healthy.

According to WebMD, Some psychologists say we are cheating ourselves by avoiding crying, holding it back, keeping our emotions inside.  Why?

Benefits of crying

Well, crying:

• activates the body in a healthy way
• opens us up
• releases stress
• promotes mental health
• relaxes muscles
• activates the parasympathetic nervous system (This is part of the autonomic nervous system.  Functions include sexual arousal, waste removal, digestion, and saliva stimulation.)
• regulates the body's balance

Also, emotional tears have more stress hormones than other types of tears, such as those that lubricate and those that come along when we get something in our eye.  These tears have more mood-boosting manganese.

Where should you cry?

So, where do health professionals recommend you cry?  That is a personal choice, but they generally recommend finding a quiet place to cry such as a special sanctuary, someplace in nature, or a quiet room.

If you would rather find comfort with others, cry on a loved one's shoulder or attend a crying group.  Yep, that's right, there are crying groups where you can go and cry together with a lot of other people.  While the source I used mentioned a group in Japan, you may decide to start your own crying group right in your local community.  

Whatever you do, don't give yourself a hard time for crying.  Here are tips from Psychology Today: 

• cry for yourself and others.
• cry at what sets off tears, however small or big.
• cry for as long as you see fit.  Look inside and you will know how long you need.
• look inside for the cause of the tears so you can figure out how to take action to solve it.
• if you can't cry right away due to your location (say you are in the middle of a meeting at work), set aside time later in the day to revisit your emotions.  The tears may or may not come, but that is okay.
• be kind to yourself in relation to your crying.  Don't blame yourself or poo-poo the situation.  For example, avoid saying, "I'm so weak," or "I'm crying over nothing."

Whether to cry in public is your choice.  Some professionals say it may be healthy.  Strangers are generally receptive to crying and offer comfort rather than shying away in fear.  But others say to seek a quiet, private place to shed tears.  Do whatever feels right to you.

A note of caution

If you can't get relief from or stop crying, seek help from your healthcare provider.

When I was a small child, I refused to cry when I was in pain or scared in the hospital.  The result?  A stomach ulcer at the age of three.  Yes, three.  This is serious business, folks.  If you hold your emotions in, you could face serious health consequences.  When the doctors discovered the ulcer, they told me that from then on, I should scream and cry if I was feeling bad.  I have taken their advice ever since.

So, do you cry over your health problems, pain, other people's pain, hurt feelings, disappointments, or when you are afraid?  Or do you keep everything inside?