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Humans have three types of tears.

Basal tears are saline-based and contain electrolytes, oils, mucus, and proteins (over 1500 of them!) to keep our eyes lubricated, protected, and nourished throughout the day.

Reflex tears are similar to basal tears in biological composition, but these occur when our eyes get irritated from smoke, dust, wind, or vapors, like when you cut onions. Reflex tears flow in greater numbers at one time than basal tears to flush out irritants and debris quickly.

Now, let’s talk about emotional tears. These flow when you are feeling…emotions! These tears are on another level.

First of all, their biological composition is different from that of basal or reflex tears. Emotional tears contain a mixture of painkillers and stress hormones that get released through the eyes.

Specifically, your emotional tears contain prolactin (a hormone connected to stress and emotional regulation), adrenocorticotropic hormone (the primary marker of the body’s stress response), and leucine enkephalin (a natural opioid).

After a threat, the body needs a way to return to the parasympathetic mode. We know this as the rest-and-digest state. In this state, the parasympathetic nervous system feels safe again and has returned to regulation and coherence. This is why we can eat, make love, and enjoy life in this state. We feel secure and away from harm.

Dr. Emily and Amelia Nagoski are experts on the stress cycle and speak about the importance of completing stress responses with some kind of physical action.

One action we can take to return to the state of safety is to cry.

And as you can see from above, crying allows you to remove chemicals from your cells and change what’s happening in your body. That is powerful.

We all know that crying regulates us and helps us feel better. Now you know why, from a chemical standpoint.

A sign that you’ve released a good chunk of stuck energy? That yummy feeling of exhaustion and sleepiness. And if you can take a nap after? Even better.

There’s another reason crying feels so good once we give in—it’s the surrender to the intelligence of our body that something is yearning to be felt and that if we give it our space and love, we know we will feel better. We will feel liberated. We will feel self-acceptance when we allow our bodies to grieve, release, and mourn.

A lot of us probably grew up hearing things like, “Stop crying!” or “I’ll give you something to cry about!” (which probably made you want to cry!).

Now, you can honor all the times you weren’t allowed to cry, release, or express yourself. You can let that stuck energy have a voice and a home. You can ask your cells to release anything that doesn’t belong.

The next time you feel the lump in your throat, do your best to honor it, even if you have to excuse yourself for privacy. That’s your body telling you something is up, and something wants expression.

That’s old stress responses, old hurt, and pain finally wanting an out. Let those tears flow! Let the chemicals go!

I know you’ll feel so much better.

~

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