This archive report was first published on 3 September 2019.
While a good cry can be therapeutic, it's also a physically demanding process that can leave you feeling exhausted. According to Lauren Bylsma, PhD, a professor of psychology at the University of Pittsburgh, crying is hard on the body and requires a lot of energy.
"Crying is something that takes over your whole body," Bylsma explains in an interview with Men's Health.
When we cry, our heart rate increases and our breathing slows, says Jeffrey Cohen, PsyD, a clinical psychologist at Columbia University. This can lead to a feeling of tiredness, as the body releases stress-related hormones and emotional trauma.
Researchers have found that crying is a self-soothing behavior that reduces distress, according to a review of studies published in 2014 in Frontiers of Psychology.
However, the toll crying takes on the body is not well understood, particularly in men. Bylsma notes that in the past, men may have been discouraged from crying due to societal expectations of masculinity.
