I have a friend who says he can’t cry — are there medical conditions that stop people from crying?
- asks Rose Kelly
Peter Sergo • April 16, 2007
![[CREDIT: LEARNSCIENCE.NET]](https://scienceline.org/wp-content/uploads/2007/04/cryingeye.jpg)
[CREDIT: LEARNSCIENCE.NET]
From a badly stubbed toe to teenage angst, there are many instances that make people cry. Yet for some – no matter how charged the situation – shedding tears is impossible.
Strong emotions cause our brains to release chemicals that indirectly lead to teary eyes. A flow of tears not only shoots up the level of endorphins, natural chemicals within the body, providing a sense of well-being and relieving stress, but also they release toxins — making us healthier, according to Dr. William Frey II, a neurologist at the University of Minnesota.
Since the physical act of crying is rooted in the psychological, depression – usually a disease associated with tears – can prevent them. According to a review article published this year in the journal Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, severe cases of depression flatten emotions, leaving a person without the trigger that starts the crying circuit. Max Hamilton, who created a depression scale in 1960, commented in a 1967 paper that severely depressed patients “go beyond weeping” and settle into a cry-proof state.
The battle against depression can itself snatch away the urge to let it out. In a 2002 study, Adam Opbroek discovered that many patients with sexual dysfunction associated with prescribed anti-depressants also experienced a “diminution in emotional responsiveness.” Medication intended to reduce a sense of sadness, Opbroek found, did so but at the cost of “emotional blunting,” or the same flattening of emotion felt by some depressed patients.
Aside from a numbing form of depression, the inability to cry may be caused by a rare affliction called Familial Dysautonomia (FD), or Riley-Day Syndrome. While someone with FD experiences emotions like anyone else, they’re born without the reflex necessary to produce tears: crying becomes a dry display, according to the foundation’s website.
The inability to feel physical pain is another genetic anomaly that can make a person less likely to cry. With an underdeveloped system of nerves for sensing injury, people with Congenital Insensitivity to Pain with Anhidrosis (CIPA) have a pain threshold high enough to make a bike accident feel more like a pillow fight, and so tears flow less often.
Crying is a uniquely human trait. The situations that make us cry are often the ones we remember most. It shows we are sensitive to things we encounter in our lives and, in that way, it is important for survival. Spilling tears is something we all need to stay healthy.
183 Comments
Sometimes I can cry, and others, I can’t. Like after I’ve been crying and things get worst, the water works stop and I can’t even form tears in my eyes.
Does that mean I’m severly depressed or something?
I’ve been on anit-depressants before, but can that happen? I cry and then just stop.
my husband experienced a traumatic brain injury in an auto accident that left him in a 2 week coma and months of rehabilitation. He cannot cry, not matter how badly he wants to. He was able to cry prior to the accident. His neurologist thinks it’s PTSD, is that the most likely reason? he is not depressed…
i used to cry but now it’s impossible. i like to cry and i wish i can be back a normal person.
When I’m really sad I can’t cry it out. I develop a lump in my throat and my eyes water but no tears run. Is that normal? It’s weird because I was one of those people who couldn’t control their tears.
My mother in law lost her huband of 61 years and has yet to cry two years later. She feels a lump in her throat and tighness in her chest but cannot cry. I noticed my husband and sister-in-law only shed a couple of tears, is this heriditary?
I suffered a truamatic brain injury in 1996 was in a coma for several days spent 4 months in the hospital and 8 more to recovery at home. Since then, I have not shed a tear even if I feel the emotion in my heart and need to cry. I am not depressed and do not have PTSD since my car accident has been so long. It is very troubling but have not talked to my Dr as I already deal with residual effects such as ADHD and a learning disorder.
Listen, I only checked this stuff out cause my wife says that i am not normal. let me tell you that I haven’t shed a tear since I was 12 years of age. I am now 27. I only cryed then cause i didn’t want to go back to a bording school that shall remain nameless. It was a tuff school which dischsarged us only at the end of the month. My father who I was really close to recently passed and my wife thought that something would come from this and nothing has.
I am not depressed, feel normal and take lifes lessons to my small construction company.
Don’t let people say that not crying is not normal. It just means that you have lived life, and that there are other things bigger than break ups and deaths. Everything has a begining and an end. Peoople that dont cry tend to know this.
Wether it be your dog, car or esspresso machine, everything breaks, so will our sun one day.
So maybe cry babies are the ones that arent normal as they haven’t realised this simple fact of life yet.
GO NON CRYERS GO
I’m only 15 years old, I don’t suffer from depression as far as I know and I don’t think I have experienced any major traumas that could cause PTSD. If anyone on this website can help or knows anyone who can help me understand why I physically can’t cry then could you please post information on this website because I all I want is to be a normal teenager who experiences normal emotions and who can deal with them by letting out a tear. EVERYONE SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO CRY.
Im 15 as well and no matter what I do i can’t cry , I broke my foot no tears came out , when people I love die I cannot shed one tear ,my gf broke up with me and I loved her alot,but could not cry,is there something wrong with me or was it the way i was rasied.
This is really interesting! I am really glad I can cry!But I dont like others seeing me cry. I am really sorry to those of you who can’t cry. It must be very furiating.
My husband also cannot cry. He is 27 and has not cried since he was 24. The weird thing is he used to cry ALL the time. Every fight, sad movies, all the time and several times a week. Now it has been 3 years and he just doesnt cry. I wish he would though.
I havent cried for 4 years. And no matter what shit happens I just cant cry anymore. I went through a phrase prior to this 4 years of dry spell where I used to cry everyday. The tears were so uncontrollable they just flowed out whenever i feel sad. they were so hard to control. Then after that, I just stopped crying altogether. No matter how hurt or sad I was, all i can feel is a tightness in my chest. Nothing more.
For quite long, I’ve been crying almost everyday. When I wake up and when I go to sleep or sometimes even after lunch (personal reasons)
I don’t think I’m depressed or anything… That time I prayed to God that I want to stop crying. Now that He granted my wish, I couldn’t help but feel different. I cry when someone insults me, or when someone dies, when I feel pity, or when I watch dramatic endings. Its just funny that I can’t. Maybe some physical condition caused this but I couldn’t point out what.
My heart is really clenching so bad with a story that I’m currently reading. My eyes burn and I can barely breathe, but I can’t cry.
I haven’t cried over anything in just under nine years. Not sure if it’s due to depression or a mental block placed upon myself for seeing crying as a weakness. I do wonder about it though, and wonder why it is that no matter how bad things get, who dies, or whatever, I can’t shed one tear.
I had the most difficult time crying after my son was killed. Yet, when I would go to this very kind dentist for a simple exam (painless)…I would be weeping. I cry at inappropriate times and only certain people seem to cause me to be able to cry.
Its a horrible tense *feeling* not being able to cry.
Whenever I am able to shed just a few tears,its a wonderful feeling of relief and relaxation that all the tranquilizers in the world just cannot duplicate. I hope you can help people like all of us who have such difficulty crying. I am certain we will live longer &more happily, too.
i used to be extremely depressed and cried more than once every day… my parents were big drug addicts and unlike my other family members who didnt want to get involved i did. tho i no i shoudnt have i always opposed their drug use and would scream at the top of my lungs and swear at them… i called the cops and dcfs on them (they didnt do much infact yelled at me) but as i did this my dad would act abusivley towards me thus i became depressed and after my dad hurt me so bad it made a scar i cried like no other i screamed tears but after that never did i cry again… later my dad samshed me against the door in the closet all i did was louagh… i am an extremely cold person i think terrible thoughts like wishing death on my mother because then i would inherit everything i try to control my thoughts but its really hard and i donnt want to think like that but i really cant help it…. well anyway i dont cry anymore because i think i have had my share of pain and tears so i guess i dont need to cry anymore nothing is painful enough for me to waist m time and mope nothing is that special to me anymore… kinda sad isnt it… even my own brothers death i didnt even get sad hhmmpphh
I have not been able to cry for over 5 years. Am 62 years old. Separated about 5 years ago from husband of 40 years. Divorced 2 years ago-could not cry then or at deaths in the family or any other loss. I feel that I want to cry, that it would make me feel better. May get a little misty but cannot break down and have a good cry. Doctors and even a psychiatrist don’t seem to think it’s a problem, but I do. This is the first place I have seen other people have the exact same problem and possible reasons. I take anti-depressants and they seem to help somewhat.
I was on here to see why my co-worker doesn’t cry, then I read Alexis’s post. I’m so very sorry that nobody helped you. I’m sorry that it broke you. I hope you can find healing. You were only trying to do the right thing. I pray you find your joy again.
hey okay so i havent been able to cry in forever! i used to take medicine for depression and im so afraid that it has enabled me to cry. i took the medicine becuase my father abused me emotionally and physically and i havent cryed ever since ive seen him which was two years ago. well ok thats not entirly true. i can only cry when i see things about abuse.. ANYWAYS so i was watching this commercial and supposidly there are eye drops that can trigger the chemicals in your brain to make you cry. but just ask your eye doctor.. there is still hope!
“Strong emotions cause our brains to release chemicals that indirectly lead to teary eyes.”
Is there not a part of the brain that can be damaged when someone can’t cry? For example, maybe the chemical-releasing part of the brain that causes tearing when you feel a strong emotion can be releasing the chemicals/hormones/neurotransmitters at the wrong times or not at all. I find this likely for those who do not have depression or Post-traumatic Stress Disorder.
For those who do or used to have a stronger degree of Depression, it’s like Diabetes. When you have an onset of diabetes (after birth) or as an adult)the insulin receptors/releasers in the body are damaged because you probably had too much sugar and your pancreas stopped being able to filter sugar properly. For depression or any emotional disorder, the inability to cry and crying at the wrong times may come from having cried too much which may have caused the receptors/releasers in the brain to be damaged just like in Diabetes.
(Sorry if I’m contradicting myself or make no sense or am giving the wrong info; please correct me)
For those who think that you don’t have depression and feel that you just do not have the reasons to cry because you know “that you have lived life, and that there are other things bigger than break ups and deaths,” you might actually be desensitized to emotion and are not interested in things much/don’t feel things like most people (apparently) do. You can still be happy and might be content with how you feel now, but you might remember that earlier in life, you either felt really bad and, at that point, decided that you never needed to cry again or, you never actually cried.
I say all of this because, like all things that happen to people, it’s either psychological or physical.
I hope you all can get some sort of help because even if it does look pathetic, crying is the best thing one can do to renew one’s spirit and energy, and clear one’s mind in order to make good decisions.
Good luck to all!
Hi,
Learning more about depression has opened my eyes to a few things. From the mouth of people who have clinical depression and accept it, they have said that depression is not a constant state of sadness but instead, a state of not being able to feel anything at all.
Remember that being depressed does not always mean that something so bad happened to you that you are always sad. It also means that there may be a chemical imbalance in your brain and problems just add to it. Also, having problems and realizing that you can’t feel anything or can’t cry when you probably should be can be devastating, adding more to the depression. (I bet you can see the vicious cycle here)
I came here looking for some advice, regarding a person I know who is now incapable of crying. I have noted that this person, close to me, is now capable of other things instead. Has become self absorbed, uncaring of how others feel, uses people for what this person can get from them…ect..
I was reading the comments and the one comment that struck me as to where my friend is heading is, unfortunelty, non cryer, August 27, 2008 at 11:05 pm. The person who signed as Non Cryer, appears to be almost superior in his lack of emotional output. This strikes one as a person who cared very deeply at one time for people, places and perhaps social issues, only to lose hope in all mentioned, thus taking a shelter in not allowing feelings to be manifested. Its a shame.
The other point that I am writing about, is the article where it is stated that crying is a uniquely human trait. This is catagorically untrue. Animals do cry. So do mammals. Elephants cry, for example, when people beat them and when their loved ones die. Koalas exhibit tears, as do horses, as do cats actually. And Ive seen dogs cry. In my years as a child and animal advocate, I have seen all spieces exhibit deep sorrow, I have seen a young loin die of a broken heart, despite all our efforts to save him, once his mate was shot by a hunter. I have seen wolves literally die of starvation when their mate is caught in a barbaric animal trap and instead of eating, laid there next to their mate and died along with their mate. I have seen bears cry, I have seen cows and calves suffer such pain and intense heart break when at rodeos that it would make you be ashamed to be a human being.
I have seen children, cared for them, tried to help them adjust to the horrific thingstheir parents did to them, cry in such a way that I would think “this is the sound that angels make when they weep.”
So in closing, I’d like to say, that tears are an important function of a well adjusted life form, but that said, just because tyou cant see a life form crying does not mean that they are not. As my Grandmother once told me “Just beacause you cannot see a tree crying when it is being chopped down, does not mean that the tree is not.”
So to the gentleman that wrote in on, August 27, 2008, Non Cryer, I hope one day you will allow those close to you the honour of comforting you and may you find the peace and freedom and trust you search for, to allow yourself to cry on the outside instead of solely on the inside.
I was depressed often until I suffered with a psychotic episode.I was put on drugs abilify to be exact.I took them for 5 months.Now that I am off them for 2 months I have not been able to cry.I actually show more emotions of anger now than sorrow.I think it could be the drugs that caused it,I do notice that everytime I want to cry I get a strong headache and that just distracts me from crying.I am pretty sad I dont feel like the same person I feel like I have changed.Like Marla describes her friend.Now that I dont cry I changed my mind of things for one I care less about people less attached.Because when I did cry I cried because I was attached or what some would could call love.Now I love them but I realize that when I was a weeping harlot I was hurting myself.Now I dont cry and dont feel abused,when I did cry it was because I felt so.I pretty much dont mind for people anymore after being hurt repeatedly.I hope them well but I just get emotionally attached or help them out in something,they can find it elsewhere like I did when I wept.So now I feel there is two of me that constantly fight,but the weeping me gives me a headache so when I want to cry or about to feel pity for myself I get a strong headache like a tension headache.Like I said before I can get angry but not cry,certain situations lately would be ones I would cry about and consider suicide cuz I was depressed but I dont feel that no longer,I actually think justice should be made and the other person be punished and die rather than myself.So yes I do have hope for myself as for others who do me wrong I wish them death.Not something I see as bad,the way I see it is they need to die before they change.
I’m 18 and simply can not remember the last time that I cried. It makes me wonder if I am broken. Something in me broke when I was younger and I just stopped crying. I don’t think that I am depressed and there no significant truama in my past. I still feel emotions, probably the same as everyone else although i’ll never know, but I can’t cry. I want to.
Dear Broken,
Sometimes at night I find myself asking the same question; what is wrong with me? I haven’t cried since the war. I think I might be a robot; my doctor says I have Chronic Dry Eye, but I am not convinced. Try watching the Notebook or Love Actually. If you can’t cry you may or may not be human.
Love…
Your Friend with Dry Eyes
Four months ago I stopped crying. I feel the response starting as well as a very strong need to cry, but it is abruptly cut short. I have Lyme Disease and started a new herbal protocol around that time. The herbs immediately lifted a cloud of depression I was living under. I don’t know if somehow they are preventing me from crying.
Yesterday, in the middle of Tai Chi class, I started crying and then last night again a brief episode. Can I now cry again? I don’t know.
hey um well… im not sure if its normal but i havent cried for i think five months. I was taught that tears are weakness. i dont show much emotion, im not an emotional person. there are times when i want to cry and i force myself to remeber all the bad things ive been through and the new problem thats making it worse but i cant. my eyes dont water. and lately ive been feeling numb, i dotn feel happy when something goes right and i dont feel sad anymore. i feel nothing and it bugs me that i cant feel anything.
Some people just don’t cry, I think it’s kind of wrong for people to expect everyone to express their emotions in the same way, for people who are wondering if there is something wrong with you becuase you don’t cry, there is only something wrong with you if this is a sudden developement and isn’t normal for you.
This may not be ‘normal’ for the rest of the population but if it’s normal for you it’s fine.
I really can go years without crying, it’s not like I force myself not to, I just never get the urge to.
If I ever cry it’s becuase there is something VERY wrong with me.
I will not take anyone telling me there is something wrong with me because I cry so little, you shouldn’t either.
I since I have no reason mourn achievement. Sometimes with a terrible desire to do so, but I can not. When a feeling comes over me and I come from the desire to mourn, my eyes fill with tears, but even if I do not go sfuerce. I can not mourn, why is that?
I don’t want to sound like a hard ass but I have never cried ever. I through tantrums when i was little, but i have never shed one tear. I’m 20 years old. Good thing i’m a marine right
I havnt cried since I was in the 4th grade when my my mother died.
I am now 30. i havnt cried since, not even when my wife died at my age of 25.
Lol it’s really funny how some “men” who are older than 20 years and still want to cry :D , in my book a man should stop crying after the age of 12.
i haven’t been able to cry at anything since being born ive been told despite broken bone dad plus outher members of the family dying yet on freak occasions when ive had a drink of alcohol i cry does somebody care to explain please
I can cry for hours on end but only if no one can see me do it. I’m not sure what this means but i would like some form of answer because it worries alot of people. please help?
If you can help me in any way feel free to find my on myspace or facebook.
Hi, im 16 and ive always been known to cry easily yet lately i can’t. even though i so much want to. and i feel that my chest is tightening everyday. is it because of the stress im getting from a huge and important exam that is coming up? i used to feel much better after a good cry.
This is brilliant reading. I am 29 and cry often, at different things, happy and sad. From reading these pages I now understand it is because I have very high emotions in my body that come out in tears. I was abused slightly physically but more mentally as a child which I had put it down to but now I am sure that that has nothing to do with it and I just have high level of emotions. I hate to let people see me cry and see it as a weakness. I do not want people to feel sorry for me when I cry and when I read Alexis no 16 I felt for her but did not cry until I read Debbie, 18 and it made me cry to think of her relating to Alexis. I wish I could control my tears but if I try to, it makes it worse then I get into a state and cannot speak then I make noise because I am crying so much and feel even more stupid. I do not ever feel better after I cry in front of someone, I just feel stupid. I suppose I do feel better after I cry if I am alone. I never cry for myself when I am alone. I also find it so interesting that people that don’t cry’ want to. Having read these pages and tried to find an answer to my crying dilema, I am non the wiser. I still don’t want to cry in front of people for no apparent reason. If I could just control it. I have thought about going to the doctor but feel stupid saying that I cry for no reason, I am sure I am not ‘depressed’ maybe a hormone imbalance though. I have also thought about a councellor but they will just go into my child hood which is full of emotions so I am bound to cry but to be honest I know that nothing can be changed about it and it has probably made me a better person because having experienced what I did means I treat other beings well. I do have very high moods and very low moods and often no in between. I hope it all works out for you all. xx
It’s good to know that I’m not a freak and THERE ARE some people like me.. I have just turned 14 last month and I believe that I haven’t cried in 6 years… It’s just frustrating at times.. I am a good student at school and all of my report cards are filled with A+s but I can’t do one simple thing… Cry… When people do things or call me names, they think that it might trigger me and make me cry… But I just don’t.. They then start to think that I’m cold-hearted.. Which is way far from the truth.. It just ripes you to pieces inside… People who can cry are so lucky! You better thank God for that gift!
I have always been this way, even as a small child. I never cry anymore, When I even feel like it, I can’t make myself cry. When I could cry, I never cried tears for some reason. Plus I had a very traumatic childhood. I had a grandmother that died when I was only eight, and I suffered for well over a year with depression from losing her. Then my father always belittled me and called me names, my mom always told me I wasn’t normal. Plus I was teased throughout my teenagehood. The last time I even came close to crying, was so long ago I can’t even remember. I try to listen to sad music and watch sad things on TV but still cannot cry. I wish I could but it’s just impossible. I watch the news and hear and read about the children and animals that suffer from abuse I still can’t cry, I want to know how I can?
I’m 27 y/o now and haven’t cried in 16 years. In fact, I remember the exact moment of the last time I did cry. I’ve been unable to cry at funerals of family and friends or extremely sad moments in my life. I’ve felt almost emotionally disconnected for this entire time.
I’ve started having some really healthy cries for the last couple weeks after breaking up with my girlfriend of 5 years (whom I was going to propose to). Certain things will trigger memories and I’ll just start tearing up, other times I’ll just start sobbing. Even unrelated things, like emotional scenes in movies, will trigger a response. I’ve become much more aware of what I’m feeling/thinking recently and the peace that comes with that. I feel like I’m growing again and have become much more in tune with myself and what’s going on around me. Its sad that it’s taken this loss for me to recognize this change.
i’m 13,which is younger than i’ve seen anyone else with this problem. I go through alot everyday and have relationship issues at many times,but i never cry,no matter how badly i want to. Crying always made me feel better due to the release of endorphines,but i randomly got to the point where i could not cry,which is very unhealthy if i’m not mistaken. I believe the problem is either related to blocked tear ducts,or it could simply be like fear,as in: things that have made you cry before are now something you’re emotionally immune to,or things less depressing than that specific event cannot make you cry because you know things could be much worse. I haven’t cried in about two years for school related problems which shall remain anonymous. Ever since that day,i have not shed a single tear.
I don’t cry anymore. I make sobbing noises, and my eyes water. I have been through too much these last years. I need to cry, but it doesn’t happen.
I can empathize with all those who cannot cry. I went through quite a traumatic childhood and have discovered that I seem to be unable to cry even though it has been almost twenty years since those times. A recent example is that my grandmother passed away late in 2010, and even though I didn’t find out for three months, when I finally got the news I found myself unable to cry. My grandmother meant more to me than almost anyone, so my inability to cry made me feel even worse, and yet the tears still did not come. I have been told by countless shrinks that I have some pretty severe emotional issues to work out, but personally I believe that every situation, no matter how grim or depressing it may seem, can be taken in at least a slightly positive perspective. Obviously there are exceptions, but there aren’t that many. I admit that there have been quite a few times when I wanted to cry until I couldn’t cry anymore, but I am able to see that the tears wouldn’t have changed anything. Crying can be very beneficial to some people, but for others like myself, it isn’t as neccessary. Call me emotionally damaged or whatever you want, but while my experiences may have made it harder for me to cry, they have also made me a better person for having survived in the first place.
my best friend can’t cry ! she says that when she gets so mad she get pissed off and finally she doesn’t cry’! i need to now what’s going on with her ! because it’s really affecting her in a bad way!
I’m hoping to find a way to let her cry a bit ! i’m doing some reaserches but i can’t understand a word!
what am i supposed to do?!
Everyone says “you’re like the girl from ‘The Holiday’ ” – except they don’t know that it is against my will that I cannot cry. If I had one wish in life, it would be able to cry.
I quit crying when I was twelve to test myself to see how long I could go and would force myself not to cry for years at a time.
I was prom queen, homecoming queen, class favorite, star athlete, never had an enemy in my life before college, perfect “role model” babysitter. I am a genuinely positive person who loves life and I am not depressed.
A few years ago, I realized stopping tears was ridiculous and a stupid endurance test and started yearning for the ability to literally shed tears. I swear I have handicapped this ability forever.
It’s like my tear ducts are paralyzed, however bad I WANT to cry… I literally can not! My body won’t let me! I’ve been through at least five family deaths, a sudden break up after a healthy five year relationship, graduation/moving to college, and loads of other typical young woman trials that should definitely warrant tears, but I can’t! It is driving me nuts. Not being able to release my emotions makes me feel inhuman, weighed down, and frustrated beyond belief.
I just want help because no one understands. Pain, death, sappy movies, NOTHING can release the feeling. I blog, journal, talk to friends, and try to release my emotions other ways but NOTHING helps. I just want to cry. I feel numb and unreal.
Okay, so i am quiet a bit worried for my boyfriend. he said he cried once i believe but when he was a little kid, right now he is 17, but somehow ever since that one time, he said he cant cry anymore, he gets watery eyes but no matter how sad,down, depressive, he is, his body wont let him, so he believes is maybe because his eyes when they get watery it overflows. but i been trying to get him to cry at least when i am there so i can comfort him, because even if he is alone he cant cry, neither when people around. and thats getting him pretty down and frustrated because he wants to n feels like it at times, but he just cant and he doesn’t know what could help him do so, because i don’t want him to hold on that stress because it just puts him down. and gets me sad that i cant help him out because i cant make him cry when i am there. so PLEASE!!! WE NEED HELP..!!! HHOW or WHAt could help, him get at least a tear out so his body releases that stressed he has been holding back for so long. i told him that maybe is medical condition but he said he doesn’t think so because he said he is able to get watery eyes but cannot cry let tear out, so PLEASE!! HELP!!!! ASP.
This is just like me. Can’t cry. I am just like that. I’ve even written to Dear Abby and a doctor. Neither of them have published my problem. I really need to know what’s wrong with me.
I’m 15. I dated this girl that I fell in love with and then she broke up with me and I cried like crazy. That was the last time I cried and it was almost a year ago. I don’t know why I can’t cry. It annoys me because I can’t produce tears like normal people. When I broke my arm a few years ago, I didn’t cry. When I sprained my arm a year later, I still didn’t cry. Earlier this year, I sprained my wrist and still didn’t cry. I also cracked both of my heels and didn’t cry. Physical pain only made me cry when I was really young (around age 10 and under). Emotional pain stopped after that horrible break up. I don’t have PTSD and I’m not depressed because I have an amazing life. If anyone could help me, please do. I really need an explanation…
Recently my son-in-law died suddenly and instantly, and I flew immediately to my daughter in another state. I did not cry, but only put one foot in front of the other trying to help her.
I cried a little at the memorial. What is wrong with me? I loved this man, and my daughter and he had a wonderful marriage cut short after 20 years.
Now I am home and she is on her own. I am here and feel empty and very sad, but cannot cry. I didn’t cry at my mother, father, or mother-in-law’s funerals either, yet sobbed when Mom & Dad’s dog died, because I suddenly realized that my only connection to them was gone. My work to help them was over.
I miss this son-in-law very much. He was very intelligent, fun, witty, and had a 6th sense about life. What a loss to the world.
Mom
there is a difference between the emotional abilty to cry and the physical aspects that affect lack of lacrimal function. i have a child who suffered severe, traumatic brain injury and has surpassed any expected recovery or achievement. in fact, if you didn’t know of her injury (she was hit by a car & suffered TBI; at Mass General for a month+, followed by rehabiltation inpatient & outpatient. today, she attends her age-equivalent academics & sports (sports restricted only by recurrent head injury).
her accident ocurred on her left side. when she cries, her left eye does not produce lacrimation.
all for tonight
Im a teenager about 13 1/2 and I haven’t cried since I was seven. I came
Close one or twice but I barely can get my eyes to water…I still feel worse than crying at that time but I was never depressed…my girlfriend of 3 months dumped me which is for a teen very very tough but still not even my eyes watered. The feeling is like a hell on earth and there is no way to just let go…I also have a very bad temper almost lik anger management….I think this plays a big role in that and vice versa. Does anyone else get angry and almost hostile to let something that should make you sad out? Please help…