Why Crying is Important

Without fail, anyone who comes to my office and sheds a tear, immediately apologizes. To this I often answer, if you can’t cry in your therapists office, where can you? But really even such an answer is doing a disservice to the benefits, importance and poor reputation that crying has in our society. .
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While there has been some improvements in normalizing and accepting tears for simply what they are rather than weakness - I think we can all use a reminder. .
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Crying activates the parasympathetic nervous system which has a self-soothing affect by regulating emotions, promoting feelings of calm and reduces distress. .
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In addition, crying is also believed to be a bonding or attachment behavior as it rallies people’s support. .
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Emotional tears also release oxytocin and endorphins which are known as the “feel good” hormones which make you feel good and relieve pain (both physical and emotional). .
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Tears also reduce stress by releasing chemicals. Some research suggests that tears can carry stress inducing chemicals that are flushed out of the body while crying. .
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If nothing else, this is a reminder that no one needs to apologize for their tears - we all have them and good thing!