You might feel unable to cry even when you’re sad, anxious, or in pain.
Not being able to cry when you want to or feel like you should can feel confusing and distressing.
While crying can sometimes be unsettling, it can also have important emotional benefits.
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Research shows that crying can help you release emotions instressful or distressing situations.
It can even help you physically clean your eyes out and help you communicate feelings.
However, there are some circumstances in which people can have difficulty crying.
There are physical, emotional, and psychiatric reasons why crying may be affected.
Here are some common reasons why people find themselves unable to cry.
Medical Conditions
Certain medical conditions simply make it physically difficult or impossible for you to shed tears.
Conditions like dry eye syndrome physically impact the production or release of tears from your tear ducts.
Dry eye syndrome, known as keratoconjunctivitis sicca, is characterized by poor tear production.
Medications
Being on certain medications can reduce or stop your ability to produce tears.
Certain other medications may affect tear production and contribute to dry eyes.
Some herbal supplements, including echinacea, kava, and niacin, can contribute to dry eyes.
Your body is also more likely to produce fewer tears.
Windy conditions can also affect the production and evaporation of tears.
Surgery
If you’ve had eye surgery, you could experience difficulty crying.
This can affect how a person experiences and expresses their emotions, making crying more difficult.
Depression often causes melancholy, characterized by flat emotions and disinterest in the world.
Anhedonia, or a loss of interest in previously enjoyed activities, is another common symptom of depression.
Research suggests that people who experienceanhedoniaalso have a more challenging time with emotional expression, including crying.
Emotional Repression and Suppression
People deal with emotions in different ways.
And some people may intentionally suppress their emotions to avoid revealing what they are feeling.
Research suggests that suppressing your emotional expression can have adverse health effects.
Behaviorally, suppressing emotions can contribute to unhealthy coping mechanisms.
Physiologically, it can lead to higher stress levels.
Evidence indicates that this emotional suppression increases the risk of an earlier death.
Abuse
Survivingemotional and physical abusecan have a negative impact on the way you process emotions.
Abuse survivors also sometimes experience numbed or muted emotions.
Societal Expectations
Certain societal and cultural standards sometimes ascribe shame to crying.
Gender stereotypes can also play a role here.
Crying also has a myriad of physical and psychological benefits.
Some people have honed healthy ways to feel and process emotions of sadness without crying.
Many reasons beyond your control could make it difficult to cry.
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