Here's Why You Get So Tired After Crying
Lifestyle - News
By DANIELLE RAMOS-SULLIVAN
People can cry tears of joy, but usually, you end up crying due to stress or feeling overwhelmed. Dr. Pamela Rutledge explains that “Stress causes fatigue, which diminishes our ability to self-regulate. This makes us more vulnerable to emotional exhaustion which can also make us quicker to cry,” and we all know that crying makes us physically exhausted, too.
Shedding tears is actually your body's way of comforting itself, since your parasympathetic nervous system switches on and gives your body the signal to rest, making you tired. Tears are also filled with stress hormones, and when you release the tears, you’re ridding yourself of stressors while increasing endorphins, which make you feel better.
Crying also makes your eyes feel heavy and swollen, and your heart rate increases, but once the stress hormones from crying are released, your body starts to feel a sense of calm taking over. The reason you start falling asleep is because your body is finally relaxing, so after a good cry sesh, it’s normal to want to take a nice, long nap.