When bad things happen to me I find it impossible to cry. Yet when bad things happen to other people (whether I know them or not) I'm a mess. I find it bizarre.

No advice. I am waterworks so easily.

Funny thing is...my dad was more waterworks than my stoic mom. My mom felt it but has that NewEnglander stiff upper lip. My dad was bawling at every college drop-off, etc. Over the years, my mom has actually become more likely to shed tears.

I am glad I work at home. When I would get really angry at work the tears would come and I'd have to hide out in my office to compose myself. I find myself tearing up at kids' school events...they are so darn cute.

I dont cry alot but I get...misty and then in my head I say "pull yourself together" and I can stop it. I'm one of those people who does cry but I can control it. I've never cried at work. A commerical, a movie, if I hear a sad story, I get misty. However, I ALWAYS cry full on tears at a wedding whether I know the couple or not. I also cry for other people's sadness/pain. Sometimes I avoid reading articles/watching things cause I dont feel like crying at that particular moment. Usually though I cant help myself and the tears roll. If someone is upset and starts to cry...I will too doesnt matter if I know them or not. I'm a mix....before I had my DD I could go a year without crying. Now...I'm a gushy mess but I can control it.

Anonymous wrote:I'm the exact same way, except I do not cry in response to being stressed or "hurt". I do not cry over emotion pain that is inflicted on me. In moments of pain, my response is normally anger.

HOWEVER, my empathy is off the charts. I cry for other people's sadness, I cry when I hear of a child hurt or harmed, I've even been brought to tears when I have seen a parent yelling harshly at a small child that I did not even know at the grocery store, I've cried dropping my happy child off at daycare when I've seen another child having a rough start. I also cry out of happiness-A LOT.

This is me. I probably cry about something in my own life once a year or once every other year, if even. But about tv commercials, natural disasters, the state of American education, birds with oil stuck to them, displays of patriotism - oh, the tears roll. Can be very embarrassing.

When I was in group therapy, one of the therapists described my all-too-frequent tears as "manipulative" -- she said that my crying shut down other people. Which I suppose is true, but wow!

Once i stopped hating her, I started to think about that and realized I did need to stop the tears if I wanted to be heard. So when it happens, I try to breathe and relax.

But some commercials? I'm a freaking waterworks.

Anonymous wrote:I am one of those people who cries at weddings, special moments, goodbye, etc... I want to be one of those people that holds it together. My question is how do you keep it together for those who do not cry? In your opinion is it possible to go from crying easily to not?

It runs in my family--nothing to be ashamed of. I think the only time I would want to reduce my crying is when it interferes. It doesn't interfere with my personal relationships. If it happens at work, that might be more problematic.

I'm the exact same way, except I do not cry in response to being stressed or "hurt". I do not cry over emotion pain that is inflicted on me. In moments of pain, my response is normally anger.

HOWEVER, my empathy is off the charts. I cry for other people's sadness, I cry when I hear of a child hurt or harmed, I've even been brought to tears when I have seen a parent yelling harshly at a small child that I did not even know at the grocery store, I've cried dropping my happy child off at daycare when I've seen another child having a rough start. I also cry out of happiness-A LOT.

I don't cry a lot. I never really thought about it, I guess I just assumed that most people "grow out of" the whole crying at the drop of a hat thing. I wonder if more people are like me, since I never see any adults crying anywhere (like at work) unless something just happened like they got fired or found out a relative is terminally ill or something. (oh, and pregnant women, or women just back from maternity leave)

I read somewhere that people have different biological set points for how easily they cry and there's not much you can do about it.

I'm right there with you. It's so hard to turn off.

No advice, just empathy!

I used to cry at the drop of a hat. Now I cry more than most, but much less than I used to.

The trick I use is that if I feel like I'm about to cry and don't want to, I'll give myself a mental long division problem. ex: What is 564 divided by 12? And figure it out in my head. The mental energy on something so non-emotional tends to stop my instinct to cry. But of course that means that I'm focused on long division instead of the moment. So I tend to use it only when it would be embarrassing to cry.

empaths feel emotions of others as well as their own emotions. Sometimes just the emotion of an event will overcome you. Many empaths have a hard time "turning off" the constant barrage of emotional energy that comes their way. Try the "zip up" method.....it will keep your energies protected from any invading energies that are not your own. I've been using this method for 3 or 4 years now and it works beautifully.



Hope this helps.

I cry WAY too easily. It's my stress response. Hate that it happens at work sometimes. If you find a fix to it, let me know. Even if I enter into a situation telling myself I am NOT going to cry no matter what, I sometimes still do. It sucks. And it seems to happen most when dealing with men.

Sell your soul.

Ha, only kidding. Can't offer suggestions though. I cry at some TV commercials. I'm just a sensitive gal.

I am one of those people who cries at weddings, special moments, goodbye, etc... I want to be one of those people that holds it together. My question is how do you keep it together for those who do not cry? In your opinion is it possible to go from crying easily to not?