The Health Benefits of Crying

It's Mental Health Awareness Week in the UK and I wanted to talk about one of the most natural ways we can support our mental health and some of the science behind it which I find pretty fascinating.

As humans we produce three different types of tears:

1. Basal tears which are secreted constantly to keep our eyes moist whenever we blink.
2. Reflex tears which are secreted to protect the eye in response to an irritant in our environment (dust, onions, smoke).
*The first 2 are 98% water...
3. Emotional tears which we shed in response to various emotional events. These tears contain higher levels of stress hormones than Basal and Reflex tears.

Researchers have established several emotional health benefits of crying emotional tears that you may not be aware of:

1. Crying is a powerful emotional regulation tool. It activates our parasympathetic nervous system which is the rest and digest function of our nervous system (the opposite of the stress response) and can have calming/soothing effects.
2. Crying releases oxytocin and endogenous opioids (aka endorphins) the feel-good chemicals that help to reduce physical and emotional pain.
3. Crying is a healthy way to feel our feelings vs suppressing our feelings or using unhealthy coping mechanisms which can be damaging to our health long-term.

Of course, it’s important that we feel safe wherever we are when we shed tears, but if you are in a safe environment and feel the urge to cry, a really good cry may be just what you need in that moment.

Don’t underestimate the power of shedding tears as a tool to support your mental health.

**Disclaimer** if you’re noticing yourself frequently crying uncontrollably, crying without explanation or feeling like you want to cry but your emotions feel completely locked up, it may be a sign to seek external professional support from your GP or a therapist.