Cry All You Want, It Won't Make A Difference

There is more to discuss about the way we weep now. Apparently, and in a direct rebuke to the timeless wisdom of Rosey Grier, crying doesn’t really make you feel better. Let’s see the Science!

This new study, currently published online in the Journal of Research in Personality, asked 97 women aged 18 to 48 in the Netherlands to keep a daily crying and mood diary over a two-to three-month period…. Scientists ended up with 1,004 crying episodes to analyze: Their results showed that the average boo-hoo lasted eight minutes and took place in the living room, usually alone or with one other person present. Conflict, loss, or seeing others suffer were the most common triggers for tears. For the majority of cases — 61 percent of them — sobbers reported no change in mood compared to how they felt before moisture streamed down their cheeks. Thirty percent experienced a better mood afterward and nine percent felt worse.

This is not entirely surprising. In the end, NOTHING makes you feel better. Life is miserable and unyielding, even its occasional tiny pleasures containing within them the reminder that they are the exception rather than the rule. Still, it says here that you may as well go ahead and cry anyway. It may not be effective, but it does make for a nice break in the day.

Photo by memekode