Crying is not a sign of weakness

Many people see crying as a sign of weakness and men in particular (although not exclusively) are brought up with the stigma of big boys don’t cry and men shouldn’t show their emotions. Much of this again goes back to parenting and the generations of beliefs that have been passed down to us and how society itself tries to avoid emotions and places men and women in certain boxes. As a child, if you fell and hurt your knee, you may think crying is weak if you were told to not be a baby and be a big boy/girl, brush it off.

This may also have the effect of teaching you that your feelings and your pain are not important, so you should just push it all away and get on with things. Some may even have been punished for showing emotion. “stop crying or I’ll give you something to cry for!”. Crying is not a sign of weakness, it just shows we have emotion. It alerts us that something is wrong and needs addressing, like a survival mechanism, a warning. It’s also the release of anxiety and stress hormones. Crying is beneficial and it’s a normal part of being a human being.

People who are able to express their emotions and have a good cry are reported as having better psychological outcomes than those who suppress it. Many men (again not exclusively) are brought up to believe that the only emotion that is acceptable is anger. This restriction of their emotional range can have a very negative effect on their psychological well being and can lead to depression, anxiety related disorders and addiction. So, if you feel the need to cry, go ahead and cry. You’re a human being with emotions and it’s ok to express them