Psychology Facts

▼ Crying ▼

》Research suggests that when you cry, your body releases endorphins and oxytocin. These natural chemical messengers help relieve emotional distress along with physical pain. In other words, crying is a self-soothing behavior.

》The five most common reasons for emotional crying are
loss (e.g. when a relationship ends or a loved one dies),
helplessness, physical pain and discomfort, empathic crying (e.g. crying because of the emotional reaction of someone else),
and extraordinarily positive or moving situations (e.g. tears of joy).

》Why do we cry?

To get help.
This idea is backed up by a small 2013 study. Participants looked at pictures of sad and neutral faces with and without tears. In both categories, they indicated that people with tears on their faces seemed to have a greater need for support than those without tears. Research from 2016 also suggests people often seem more agreeable and peaceful than aggressive when they cry. This may help explain your willingness to offer support to someone in tears, even if their underlying expression doesn't necessarily suggest sadness.

To relieve pain
If you walk into an open cabinet door or stub your toe on a sharp corner, the sudden shock of intense pain might bring a few tears to your eyes.
You're more likely to truly cry, however, when you experience significant pain for a long period of time, especially if you can't do much to get relief.

This type of lingering pain might come from:
migraine
kidney stones
broken bones
an abscessed tooth
chronic pain conditions
endometriosis
childbirth
Pain severe enough to make you cry does offer one benefit, though. Research suggests that when you cry, your body releases endorphins and oxytocin.

To form and strengthen social bonds
Crying puts you in a vulnerable position. The emotions you're experiencing might distract you, for one, but your eyes also blur with tears, making it hard to see.
From an evolutionary perspective, this would put you at a disadvantage in a fight-or-flight situation.
In fact, expressing your weaknesses could generate sympathy from others and promote social bonding.
When you allow others to see your weaknesses, they may respond with kindness, compassion, and other types of emotional support that contribute to meaningful human connection.

Grief and coping with loss
Many people cry to express their grief, which can be a typical part of the grieving process. Not everyone can cry when they experience a loss, and they may use other outlets to express emotion, like journaling or joining a support group.
There are many similarities in the experiences of losing both a loved one and a pet. Research suggests that people have similar language in online forums when talking about the loss of a human compared to talking about a pet.

To express joy
Have you ever cried happy tears? For some people, the experience of joy produces tears. This is commonly seen during positive life events such as a child's birth or weddings.
Crying doesn't have to be reserved for times when you are in physical or emotional pain. Expressing happy tears when you're happy is healthy.

》Male and female infants do not show any differences in crying.
However, there is a big sex difference in adults: On average, women cry 2 to 5 times per month while men cry 0 to 1 times per month. This difference starts in late childhood and likely is due to differences in socialization (for example, boys often get told not to cry, potentially leading to an inability to cry as an adult).

》Personality is related to crying.
People with high empathy cry more easily in both positive and negative situations than people with less empathy. In contrast, highly neurotic people cry more easily in negative situations than less neurotic people, but they show no differences in positive situations.

》Attachment style is related to crying, too.
People with an avoidant attachment style in relationships cry less than people with a secure or anxious attachment style.

》People in wealthy democratic countries cry more often than those in other countries.

》About 50% of people feel better after crying.
About 10% of people actually feel worse after crying.

》Your mental health can be impacted if you hold back tears or try hard not to cry. But crying isn't a sign of weakness, and there are many reasons why crying can benefit you.

》Crying can lower both your blood pressure and heart rate, studies have found. It does this by activating your parasympathetic nervous system (PNS), which helps you relax.