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While crying might not be the best feeling in the world, neuroscientists working on the psychology and physiology of the act of crying agree that crying is good for us!
It is actually a response to sadness and frustration. If we hold back our tears, it keeps us in a state of emotional stress which can be terrible for our body and mind.
It has even been proven that crying can reduce the risk of heart attacks that come with stress-related illnesses.
While most of us may feel embarrassed about crying and associate frequent or intense crying spells with some kind of weakness, in truth it means the opposite. We would be mentally stronger. That’s why.
1. By crying, we face our emotions
When we cry, we embrace our emotions hand in hand. We scrutinize them without looking away. They overwhelm us for a moment and gradually subside to give way to a certain serenity.
Resolutely refusing to cry means that we run away from our deep feelings and fail to let out our negativity that deeply confuses our physical and mental well-being.
Crying doesn’t mean we can’t deal with our emotions. On the contrary, this indicates a real capacity to face life’s situations and hazards. We keep our feet anchored in reality and experience it in all that is beautiful but complicated and sometimes painful.
By crying, our body releases all the negative energy accumulated by a stressful or painful situation to make room for the next more soothing emotions.
Read: Why Being Too Kind Can Lead To Depression
2.We don’t care what other people think
When we cry, we openly exude vulnerability. It is courageous to show your most emotional side to others without worrying about what they may infer from that attitude or perceive about us.
Many of us may have grown up in families where this type of behavior was not encouraged. It “bothered” or else it was showing weakness. Crying without worrying about being badly perceived also means freeing oneself from the negative messages conveyed by the “right thinking” social norm.
Showing your emotions is above all revealing to others that you are human.
3. Sincerity calls for authenticity
This rejection of these social norms brings us closer to the people around us who matter. Friends, family or a spouse who accepts to actually see us as we are (in our entirety), will appreciate that we allow ourselves to be fully open in their presence.
At the same time, we will be able to sort out and perceive the people who do not belong with us. Those who feel uncomfortable about sharing a moment of intense intimacy like this can be, will be unlikely to be the ones to share an authentic relationship with.
To read: How to beat depression in 5 steps
4. Crying relaxes
Holding back tears brings anger, sadness and prevents proper regulation of emotions. Who has not already experienced the surprise of a person who suddenly explodes for a detail?
Most people who hold back their feelings run the risk of violently decompensating on the day the “valve” is full.
When we cry when we need it, we all vent the risk of expressing our frustration on someone else or of instigating tension with those around us for no reason.
5. Crying improves our general health
Scientists now know how to prove that crying offers more than emotional benefits.
It also reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease. In addition, crying encourages the release in our body of feel-good hormones and reduces the level of manganese (which if too high causes stress and anxiety attacks). Finally, crying lubricates our eyeballs and prevents them from uncomfortable dehydration.
Our tears have antibacterial benefits and help flush toxins out of our system.
To read: Do you have toxic people around you?
6. We allow those around us to open up
When we cry, we show our loved ones that being vulnerable is not a weakness. It is honesty to let go in front of people you trust. If we are comfortable with our tears, there is a chance that those around us will value this act upwards, on its value scale.
For example, our friends who usually keep their emotions to themselves, will learn to share them with us. Less worried and more confident, they will know that we will not judge them and will support them. These types of positive reactions hold true. When we give of ourselves, others give in turn
7.Crying is connecting to yourself, to others and to the world
When we are in tune with our emotions, we are of course more inclined to cry. Being emotional is above all being able to notice things in us that are invisible to others.
This developed awareness of ourselves, allows us to more easily identify our strengths and weaknesses in order to be able to work on them. Someone who cries knows how their mind works.
Developing a special relationship with oneself and with others then becomes possible: building true emotional links without artifice between oneself and the world is beneficial and contributes to our personal development.
Be more serene, become more peaceful, find inner peace … Well-being therapies are flourishing on the market. Some have questionable methods, all are billed … We should think of a simple (and free) solution that is within the reach of all of us.
What if we used our biological ability to cry? Let’s take full advantage of the natural relief that crying can provide and experience its fantastic action against anxiety. Crying fits should no longer be seen as a sign of weakness, but as a sign of inner strength and mindfulness.