Maybe you grew up in a household that didn’t condone crying, or over the years you worked on holding back your tears for whatever reason. Even though you may think you look tougher by not crying, you are doing yourself a disservice. Tears are necessary to maintain healthy eyes, and crying is good for your emotional health.
Ever notice that you feel better after a good cry? That’s because crying is a release of emotions. Holding your tears back is a form of bottling up your emotions, which can come back down the road to haunt you.
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Tears are also our eyes natural lubricant. Dry eyes are a growing problem and tears prevent that. Dry eyes lead to irritated eyes and can even temporarily disrupt vision. It triggers inflammation in the eye, which can be uncomfortable to live with.
Inflammation over time causes damage to tear ducts, which creates a vicious cycle of dryness, irritation, and less tear production. Eventually, you may need to use artificial tears.
You can quickly stop this cycle by letting your eyes do what they need to do, which means tearing up.
So, the next time you’re in a situation where you feel tears forming, don’t fight it and let it happen. Not only will you feel better, but you will reduce your risk of dry eyes.
Mohan Garikiparithi got his degree in medicine from Osmania University (University of Health Sciences). He practiced clinical medicine for over a decade before he shifted his focus to the field of health communications. During his active practice he served as the head of the Dept. of Microbiology in a diagnostic centre in India. On a three-year communications program in Germany, Mohan developed a keen interest in German Medicine (Homoeopathy), and other alternative systems of medicine. He now advocates treating different medical conditions without the use of traditional drugs. An ardent squash player, Mohan believes in the importance of fitness and wellness.
