What Happens To Your Body When You Cry Too Much
There are not many moments that feel better than the ones after a good cry. Especially if you're in a comfortable space when you decide to stop holding back your tears. For whatever reason it may be, many of us feel uncomfortable indulging in a sob fest. If you are one of these individuals, we hope we can put an end to your discomfort by sharing the surprising health benefits an abundance of tears offers to the body.
In order to really feel better, avoid wishing your sobbing would come to an end. We know crying may not be your favorite action, but shedding just a few tears might not give you the lock and key needed to feel the positive health benefits a good cry has to offer. According to Healthline, crying for long periods of time releases oxytocin and endogenous opioids. The two are known as the feel-good chemicals that help relieve both physical and emotional pain. This chemical release can also explain why after you're finished shedding a good amount of tears, there is often a sense of calm and well-being that washes over.
We can blame the released feel-good chemicals for the always-appreciated sense of calm. And if that wonderful feeling wasn't enough, we can also credit a whole lot of blubbering to stress relief and improving our mood.
A good sob fest can relieve stress and improve our mood
This is because sobbing can actually have a cooling effect on the brain, states Healthline. Crying often has us taking quicker breathes of cool air. The sudden burst of fresh air can lower the temperature of our brain. And a cooler brain is more pleasing to the body, which in result, may improve our mood.
Perhaps it's time we start shifting the cultural assumption that crying is a negative action. Stephen Sideroff, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist at UCLA and director of the Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Ethics tells WebMD why. "Crying activates the body in a healthy way," he says. Adding, "Letting down one's guard and one's defenses and [crying] is a very positive, healthy thing. The same thing happens when you watch a movie and it touches you and you cry... That process of opening into yourself... it's like a lock and key."
After finding out the health benefits of a good cry, it's unfortunate a lot of us were taught to hold back our tears as adults. Shedding tears in front of others may never be your thing. But when at home or in the privacy of your own company, feel free to indulge in a good-for-you sob fest whenever you feel the tears approaching.