Is Not Being Able To Cry A Sign Of Depression

Why We Need To Cry

Crying is a healthy way to express your emotions, and can help you feel a sense of relief in stressful, sad, or anxious situations. Crying also has a myriad of physical and psychological benefits. Some of them include:

• Pain relief: If you are in emotional or physical pain, crying can help you feel some relief from your pain. When you cry, your body releases hormones such as endorphin and oxytocin that help reduce pain.
• Communication: When expressing your emotions, tears can sometimes help people understand what you are feeling. Tears are an early way we learn to communicate distress to those around us.
• Cleanse your eyes: Tears can help give your eyes a good cleanse when you are most in need of it.
• Mood booster: While it sounds counterintuitive, crying can sometimes help boost your mood. After a good cry, you may be likely to feel more relaxed and in a better mood.

If Youre Experiencing Symptoms

• Recognize if youre starting to slip. If you are struggling with new or worsening symptoms, dont hesitate to seek help. If you already have a therapist, reach out to them right away. If you do not have one, call the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration s National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP for a free, confidential referral for treatment. If youre considering harming yourself, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255 .
• Ignore incorrect attitudes. The old idea of pulling yourself up by your own bootstraps is not only outdated, but also not based in science. If you feel depressed, there is no cause for guilt, says Dr. Solomon.

Is Crying Good For Me

Crying often gets a bad reputation. Sometimes its mistakenly seen as a sign of weakness or immaturity. But the truth is that it can do us a whole lot of good both physically and mentally.

Here are a few reasons why:

• Crying flushes out harmful materials and debris, such as dust and smoke, from the eyes.
• Tears also lubricate the eyes, preventing infection and ensuring normal function.
• There are three types of tears: reflex, continuous and emotional. Some studies suggest that emotional tears may contain stress hormones and other toxins. Therefore, when we cry we flush them out of our system. However, more research is needed in this area.
• When were feeling weepy, it lets those around us know that we need help.
• Crying is a way to acknowledge painful or challenging emotions. Sometimes our pain can be buried so deep down, that it can be difficult to articulate. Crying allows us to express challenging emotions when we cant find the words, and it may offer a sense of relief.

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Inability To Cry: The Physical Reasons

Crying makes us feel better, even if our problems persist. But sometimes our biology betrays us and the tears dont come.

Its not that were in short supply. The American Academy of Ophthalmology says that we produce a staggering 15 to 30 gallons of tears every year. Nevertheless, there are a few physical reasons why you may struggle to cry:

• You have a medical condition that affects tear production, such as dry eye syndrome or Sjögrens syndrome
• Youre taking certain medications, such as antidepressants or hormonal birth control.
• Youve recently undergone laser eye surgery.
• You live in a dry and windy climate.
• We also produce fewer tears as we age.

Signs Of Depression Quiz

If you feel as though your emotions are running your life, it could be time to get help. Please consider the questions below, which have been adapted from an inventory on Mental Health Americas website.

Over the past two weeks, how often have you experienced the following?

• Feeling down or hopeless.
• Issues falling or staying asleep or hypersomnia .
• Little to no pleasure in doing things.
• Overeating or poor appetite.
• Feeling like you are a failure, have let people down feeling bad about yourself.
• Difficulty concentrating.
• Moving so slowly that others may notice or fidgeting/restlessness.
• Thoughts of self-harm or suicide.
• If you have experienced any of the above issues, how often have they impacted your ability to function?

If any of these items feel relevant to your experience, we encourage you to seek help.

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Overeating Or Loss Of Appetite

Depression can often cause a lack of interest in food and weight loss. In other people, depression leads to overeating and weight gain. This is because a person may feel so frustrated or miserable that they turn to food as a means to escape their problems. However, overeating can lead to weight gain and cause you to exhibit low levels of energy. Not enough food can also cause you to also have low energy levels and feel weak.

Randal Lea Ma Ladac Ii Qcs

CHIEF COMMUNITY RECOVERY OFFICER

Randal Lea, our Chief Community Recovery Officer is a licensed addictions counselor with 30 years of clinical and administrative experience.

Randal received masters degrees in counseling from Trevecca Nazarene University and in psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute. He is a frequent presenter on a variety of topics such as assessment, sexual behavior in children, ethics, dreamwork and trauma. He is a certified practitioner of DreamTending and a qualified clinical supervisor.

Prior to his current role as Chief Community Recovery Officer, Randal served eight years as Assistant Commissioner with the Tennessee Department of Childrens Services. In 2008, he was recognized by the Praed Foundation as a national Systems Champion for implementing a statewide childrens assessment for DCS. He also received the Friend of Children Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010 from Tennessee Voices for Children after seven years on their board. Randal was also recognized in both 2000 and in 2015 as Professional of the Year by the Middle Tennessee chapter of the National Association for Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselors .

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Not All Tears Are Created Equal

Scientists divide the liquid product of crying into three distinct categories: reflex tears, continuous tears, and emotional tears. The first two categories perform the important function of removing debris such as smoke and dust from our eyes, and lubricating our eyes to help protect them from infection. Their content is 98% water.

Its the third category, emotional tears , that potentially offers the most health benefits. Researchers have established that crying releases oxytocin and endogenous opioids, also known as endorphins. These feel-good chemicals help ease both physical and emotional pain. Popular culture, for its part, has always known the value of a good cry as a way to feel better and maybe even to experience physical pleasure. The millions of people who watched classic tearjerker films such as West Side Story or Titanic will likely attest to that fact.

Is It Bad That I Dont Cry

Not necessarily.

Excessive crying isnt always a good sign. If you find yourself tearing up often, it could indicate that youre experiencing a lot of intense or challenging emotions, or that youre struggling with depression and anxiety.

Remember theres no right or wrong amount to cry. Everyone is different and some people find it easier to tear up than others. So dont waste energy on what you should be doing. Drop the shame and allow yourself to truly feel your current emotions.

Some people may cry at the drop of a hat. Other people may experience fewer emotional upheavals, have different ways to express their emotions, or are simply in more control of their tears. Thats completely fine, so long as youre not bottling your emotions up.

That being said, if your inability to cry worries you or youre struggling to connect with your feelings, its important that you take time to explore this. Because it might be a sign that theres something else going on under the surface.

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Mental Health Help In Tennessee

May is Mental Health Month, and at Cumberland Heights, we want to raise awareness about depression, anxiety and other conditions that frequently contribute to addiction. If you are struggling with low mood and crying for no reason, clinical treatment can help.

You are not alone. At our residential, long-term and outpatient treatment centers, Cumberland Heights provides top-notch mental health care to those dealing with co-occurring mental illnesses. Our dedicated staff members will walk with you every step of the way on your journey to recovery, helping you to rewrite your story.

To learn more about our dual diagnosis services, contact the Cumberland Heights admissions team.

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Depression Symptoms: When To Seek Treatment

It can be hard to admit to yourself that you may be depressed, let alone ask for help. Here are two good reasons why you should consider depression treatment:

• Treatment works. Even people with severe depression can find relief, and so can you.
• Early treatment is better. As with many other health problems, getting treatment early on can ease symptoms more quickly. If you wait to get help, your depression can become more severe and harder to treat.

Talk to someone. There are many people willing to help you overcome depression, but the first step you have to take on your own is to let someone know how you are feeling. It may help to start by talking to a close friend or family member. Ask them for support in finding depression treatment. The sooner you get treatment, the sooner you will start to feel better. Don’t hesitate — call your primary care doctor or a medical health professional if:

• You think you may be depressed.
• You notice symptoms of depression such as sadness, hopelessness, or emptiness, or if you have less obvious symptoms such as trouble sleeping or vague aches and pains.
• Depression symptoms make it hard to function.

If you have thoughts about dying or committing suicide, seek immediate medical help. You may feel hopeless now, but treatment will give you hope — and help you see that life is worth living.

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I Cant Cry Anymore Should I Be Worried

First of all, we should start by pointing out that there is no right or wrong amount of crying. Everyone has their own threshold and deals with emotions differently. Crying too much can be a warning sign that youre going through a challenging time or that youre struggling with anxiety or depression. At the same, not being able to cry at all can also become a problem and prevent you from expressing your emotions and connecting with others. The inability to cry can be caused by several factors: physical, environmental, and emotional.

Physical

Dry eye syndrome is a condition where your eyes dont produce enough tears, and they become dry and inflamed. There are many causes behind dry eye syndrome, including age, menopause, thyroid imbalances, and the use of contact lenses.

Certain medications, such as birth control pills, antihistamines, blood pressure medications, and SSRIs, can decrease tear production. Laser eye surgery may also temporarily cause an inability to cry.

Reasons Why You Might Not Be Able To Cry

There are several reasons you can’t cry even when you are sad. The first thing you should understand is that you are not alone, and in most cases, there’s nothing to worry about. There are physical, emotional, and psychiatric reasons why crying may be affected.

Here are some common reasons why people find themselves unable to cry.

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The Risk Of Isolation

It can sometimes be hard to explain your thoughts and feelings to others. You might find it difficult to talk about your depression and instead you might cut yourself off from other people. The more overwhelming your symptoms, the more isolated and lonely you might become.

Without treatment and support, depression can have an impact on your relationships, work, finances and overall health, so it’s important to get help as early as possible. See our pages on treatment and support for more information.

“It feels like I’m stuck under a huge grey-black cloud. It’s dark and isolating, smothering me at every opportunity.”

Why Cant I Cry

There are lots of reasons why people have a hard time crying. Just because you rarely, or never, cry doesnt automatically mean that you are repressing your emotions in an unhealthy way. It could just mean that you havent had anything happen to you that causes you to feel sad.

Unlikely? Yes. But some people are just blessed. If you never have any reason to feel sad, then consider yourself exceptionally lucky and trust that youll be able to cry when its appropriate to.

If youre like the rest of us, though, youve probably gone through at least some events that have made you feel sad. Maybe youve lost a pet, gone through a break-up, or even just seen a tear-jerking movie. If you feel like crying and simply cant, then thats a different story and it may, in fact, be unhealthy.

Some of the most common reasons that people arent able to cry include:

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How Therapy Can Help

If you struggle to cry because youre out of touch with your feelings, you might have trouble expressing emotions in other ways, too. Professional support from a therapist can have many benefits if this is the case.

Getting more comfortable with your emotions is important for not only your intimate relationships but also your overall emotional health.

If you arent certain why you cant cry or express emotions easily, a therapist can offer compassionate guidance and support as you begin exploring this issue.

If youve tried getting more comfortable with intense emotions on your own, but you havent had much success, talking to a therapist might be a helpful next step.

Being Beyond Sadness Is A Warning Sign

In 1913, the German psychopathologist Karl Jaspers brought the inability to feel into the medical tent, calling it the feeling that one doesnt have any more feelings, the subjective blocking of thought. .

So, in a clinical interview, its really important to sort out your patients feelings. Sad? Anxious? Beyond sadness? Beyond sadness was, in the past often considered a suicide marker in psychiatry. This is what the study of psychopathology is all about, finely differentiating among signs and symptoms because some of them can serve as red flares.

So, of course, we do this today, dont we?

Actually, not.

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association, the fifth edition of which in 2013 became the world guide to psychiatry, is silent on the loss of the ability to feel, at least in depression. This fifth edition, a gross purple thing with its 947 pages, says nothing about the loss of feelings in the depression section.

But in the schizophrenia section we encounter, in the negative symptoms section, diminished emotional expression what used to be called emotional blunting has always, and correctly, been considered a sign of chronic psychotic illness, what came to be called schizophrenia.

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When To Get Help For Low Mood Or Depression

Whatever the cause, if negative feelings don’t go away, are too much for you to cope with, or are stopping you from carrying on with your normal life, you may need to make some changes and get some extra support.

If you’re still feeling down after a couple of weeks, talk to your GP or speak to a Breathing Space advisor on 0800 83 85 87 .If you are feeling distressed, in a state of despair or suicidal outwith these hours you can contact NHS 24 on 111 or Samaritans on 116 123 .

Depression Treatment: Give It Time To Work

Certain medications and medical conditions such as thyroid problems can cause symptoms of depression, so your doctor may want to rule them out. If your doctor thinks you may be depressed, they may treat your depression and help you manage your symptoms, or might refer you to a mental health professional.

Depression treatment involves either antidepressant medication, psychotherapy, or both. People with mild to moderate depression can benefit from therapy alone. Aerobic exercise is also sometimes recommended as an effective treatment for mild to moderate forms of depression. People with more severe depression usually do better with medication and therapy. Note that once you start treatment, you may notice improvements in symptoms such as sleep or appetite before you begin to feel less depressed.

Psychotherapy treats depression by helping you:

• Learn new, more positive ways of thinking
• Change habits or behaviors that may make your depression worse
• Work through relationship problems at home or work
• Help you see things in a more realistic way and face your fears
• Help you feel hopeful, positive, and more in control of your life

It can take time to break old patterns of thinking and behavior, so give therapy some time to work.

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Meditate At Your Desk

Meditation is not necessarily a time consuming exercise, but it has a wealth of benefits for your mental health. When you have limited time and you want to clear your mind, take a few minutes to meditate at your desk. Close the door and use a meditation phone app to work your way through breathing exercises that help you regain your focus.

If you cannot use an app for the meditation, then sit down and take a few calming breaths. You can focus on an object on your desk or you can close your eyes and turn your focus inward. Give yourself a few minutes to allow thoughts to move through your mind without acting on them. It is not necessary to avoid thinking instead, you want to allow your mind to let go of the thoughts until you feel relaxed and calm.