General Question

lonelydragon's avatar

Is it possible to get sick from crying?

Asked by lonelydragon (7770points) January 11th, 2010

I know that emotional stress weakens the immune system, but can crying for an extended period of time (for hours) make a person physically sick?

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17 Answers

chelseababyy's avatar

Absolutely. It wears your body down after a while. You start to just feel exhausted and it sucks all the energy out of you.

SarasWhimsy's avatar

I have two answers. The first one is if the cry is that hard, i.e., sobbing and what not, yes I would think so. I think it would eventually trigger a gag reflex.

Also, I don’t know if it would be the act of crying, or wiping your eyes with your hands. You could introduce something to your immune system that you can’t fight off well given that you’re tired and run down from crying that long.

dutchbrossis's avatar

I suppose it is. The gag reflex is true, that has happened to me before. I have also felt run down after crying for hours. Crying is also good though in the sense that it is a release

I believe crying is a sign of strength also and emotion which is good

wonderingwhy's avatar

crying as a physical act, doubtful, short of you drinking your tears >.> or them carrying some skin-based bacteria into a cut or something like that.
the emotions that bring about hours of crying and the toll they can take over a period of time, certainly. though I’d have to say that by crying you are hopefully acknowledging those emotions and therefore allowing them to pass which should naturally relieve the stress on your body, in turn making you less likely to become sick.

hungertoragejr's avatar

My parents had always said “stop crying, you’ll make yourself sick.” I always thought it was a way just to get me to stop, but I learned soon afterwards that it wasn’t. It’s basically just like eating some kind of chemical based substance “tears.”

MagsRags's avatar

I get a monster headache after a serious cry.

avvooooooo's avatar

I can pretty easily end up throwing up if I’m very, very upset. Its just one of those things.

Austinlad's avatar

Also, II suspect hyperventilation might be possible.

bigboss's avatar

exhaustion and headaches are common, plus a lot of congestion if youy get boogery, all this pressure in your face…sucks

Sophief's avatar

Of course. When I cry, I really cry and 90% of the time I am sick afterwards.

bigboss's avatar

but dont you have a goodnight sleep when your all cried out? like a baby. zzzzzz

john65pennington's avatar

I had to arrest this guy or an outstanding warrant. this occured at the apartment of he and his girlfriend. its was just a warrant for a bad check and he could have made bond and out in two hours. his girlfriend went off the deep end. she did not want him to leave her and cried frofusely, she would not stop crying,no matter how much we talked to her and attempted to calm her down. she became sick at her stomach and we knew what was coming next. you guessed it. she barfed all over the living room and the sofa. the smell was breathtaking and we finally left, after her mother came to console her. yes, extensive crying can make a person sick.

Response moderated (Unhelpful)
champane1's avatar

Yea, I’ve been sobbing, IN BLISS, never sorrow, for two or three days (on and off, but for hours at a time), and I’ve been feeling like I’ve got a bit of a cold frrom it. At first I just felt massively refreshed and renewed, and then I felt run down….

champane1's avatar

All I can recommend is, drink plenty of water, you’ll need to replenish your hydration after sobbing

KevinKlinelover's avatar

It is normal. It happened to me once when my old respite provider (a babysitter for disabled kids and adults) kicked me out and accused me of lying when I was telling my mummy what I thought I heard. Then I cried more after we got home and I got depressed. She never saw me as anything but a typical mortal human being. After that I started getting sick on my 18th birthday and I’ve been sick for 4 months. Luckily, my parents took me out of the country to get me to feel better. Then I never cried so much again till February of this year when my daddy was about to take the advantage of getting a drink from Starbucks away from me. I cried so hard that I got sick for about a couple of days to a week. Usually, I cry no more than an hour. Weeping out in scenes from “Life as a House” or “De-Lovely” is my efficient way of feeling better from any situation.

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