Benefits of Crying
Many people, especially men, have been made to believe that
there is something shameful or weak about crying. First, why do we cry? There
are very many different reasons why people cry. Some cry for joy, others cry
for sorrows. Unexpected good fortunes can make someone shed tears of joy. One
can also shed tears of regret if lack of patience has led one to miss some very
good opportunities. Loss of loved ones through death can also be a reason to
shed tears. Deep disappointment by trusted one, especially a valued partner in
a relationship can be a cause for shedding painful tears.
While men are often encouraged to be men and hold themselves
from expressing sorrows openly through crying or shedding tears, women are
encouraged to cry it out; some cultures even condemn women who do not cry often
enough. But is it necessary to cry at all? What will happen if one decides or
trains himself/herself never to cry no matter what happens? Are there health and
psychological benefits to derive from crying?
Most of us have had good reasons to cry from time to time,
though some of us are like a rock and never or hardly ever cry. But really, we
should cry some of the time. Why? Because, believe it or not, crying is
actually healthy for us in numerous ways. Check out the following list of things crying does for us:
1. Stress
relief: Yes, crying actually helps us to relieve stress. According to
psychological counsellor, Li Jin with the Yang Guang Hua Ren Psychological
Service, crying can help people deal with many different kinds of stresses,
“pressure, frustration, sorrow or anger — any negative emotions.”
2. Toxin
removal: Did you know that all tears are not the same? Several studies have
shown that tears brought about by stress are different biologically from tears
brought about by working with onions. Also, tears that are brought about by
stressful situations contain some toxins that are within the body, which means
those tears are helping the body to get rid of those toxins. No, no one wants
to cry over a bad situation, but at least the tears are helping the body by
shedding toxins.
3. Lubrication:
This one should be rather obvious. Tears help to lubricate the eyes, keeping
the eyes functioning better by not allowing them to dry out.
4. Irritant remover:
All those tears not only lubricate the eyes, but they also help to remove any
kinds of irritants in the eyes, such as grit or dirt or sand or smoke or
whatever. If you need to clean your eyes, try a good cry.
5. Feeling good:
Crying actually releases endorphins into the body. Endorphins are hormones that
can help to ease your mood, even put you into a better mood.
6. Blood
pressure: No, crying in and of itself doesn’t necessarily lower your blood
pressure, but holding back those tears can build up stress, which actually
heightens blood pressure. So don’t act like a tough guy who never allows
himself to cry, because you’re only hurting yourself.
7. Bad hormones:
Not only does crying help in a round-about way with blood pressure, but it also
helps with other cardiovascular problems, and also with potential problems with
the gastrointestinal systems, bones, muscles and more. How is this? Tears shed
bad hormones from the body, hormones that could potentially affect all these
different parts of the body in negative ways.
8. Nose cleaner:
You read that correctly. Tears actually help to keep the insides of the nose
clean of bacteria and irritants. How is this possible? Quite simply! The tear
ducts actually run down and connect to the inside of your nose, and whenever
you shed some tears, some of those tears are sent down into your nose. Not only
are you crying on the outside, but you’re also literally crying on the inside,
at least, according to Dr. Judith Orloff.
9. Infections:
Tears contain a chemical known as lysozyme, a natural anti-bacterial that works
to keep infections from happening in one’s eyes.
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