Tears Strengthen Personal Relationships

A Tel Aviv University evolutionary biologist says that tears have emotional benefits and can strengthen interpersonal relationships. Crying is known to be a symptom of physical pain or stress. New analysis by Dr. Oren Hasson shows that tears still signal physiological distress, but they also bring people closer together.

He investigated the use of tears in different emotional and social circumstances. He concluded that tears are used to elicit mercy, sympathy and assistance from others. Emotional tears also signal appeasement, attachment and grief. By blurring vision, tears signal feelings of vulnerability and love.

Dr. Hasson, a marriage therapist, uses his conclusions in his clinic. "It is important to legitimize emotional tears in relationships. Too often, women who cry feel ashamed, silly or weak, when in reality they are simply connected with their feelings......"

The next time your defenses are down and you're moved to tears, check it out yourself. What is it you're expressing - a cry for help or an effort to bond? Don't hide the fact that you're connected to your feelings because, according to this new theroy, that's a good thing!