Seniors, Caregivers, and Care Staff: Cry Me a River!
Can we talk about crying? And how healthy and therapeutic it is?
We are big criers over here, whether it be for the good, the bad, or the ugly.
Have you ever been watching a movie, or reading a book, and something just hit you? It reminded you of a past memory, or a present reality, or you were so attached to the characters that you just empathized with them?
One tear comes, then two, then seventy-two. Next thing you know, you can’t stop. Well, we are here to tell you that a good crying sesh is actually good for your health.
According to Penn Medicine, there are 5 good reasons for letting your tears flow:
- Improve Your Mood. Research published at Frontiers in Psychology shows that brain releases feel-good chemicals such as oxytocin and endorphins when shedding tears. That’s why your mood may completely change after you cry out stress, anger, and pain.
- Improve Your Vision. When we feel dehydrated, we drink water! Same as our eyes! When we cry, we not only release negative moods but also help to re-hydrate our eyes.
- Help Protect Your Eyes. When we cry, we actually give our eyes a chance to cleanse themselves. Tears contain lysozyme, lysozyme is a powerful anti-bacterial chemical that helps fight infection caused by dust and dirt that enter our eyes without our consciousness.
- Help Clean Your Nose. Probably you don’t know that our tear ducts are connected to the insides of our nose. That’s why we often have a runny nose when we cry! So similar to how tears flush out bacteria and irritants, crying can also flush out irritants from our noses.
- Strengthen Your Relationship With Others. We tend to show our most vulnerable side only to the people who matter most, such as our parents, close friends, and partners. Why? Because we tend to avoid crying in front of others at all costs. When we actually cry in front of others, it’s the time we try to create a deeper emotional bond with them. We are inviting them to see another side of us, right?
So here at CareStory, we aren’t going to tell you to dry your tears. Instead, we will offer you a tissue. Do you still remember when you thought they were the most important people to you?
REFERENCES:
Harvard Health Publishing
Penn Medicine
#THERAPEUTICTHURSDAY by Nicole Shute
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