I am Dr Dunni, your host on this podcast, and I am glad to be on this journey with you. Grief has quite an extensive effect and no predetermined timeline. Some days are great, and others not so much. Is grief keeping you down? What can you do about it?
In today's episode, we'll be talking about being able to cry. When we talk about crying, you remember probably a child being upset, a baby when the baby is born.
And by the time you think about all those scenarios where people have cried from the moment they were born till now, some are mixed with joy. Some are mixed with laughter. Some are full of sadness, deep regrets, and some are filled with fear.
Sometimes people think you should not cry in front of others. But if that is your way of expressing emotion. It's okay to allow your emotions to be expressed. Repressed emotions have never brought good to anyone. They stay in pent up and can cause illnesses.
However, whenever you want to express your emotions and show that you are not doing harm to anyone. The reason why I mentioned that is because someone might say, 'I get angry, and I hit things when I get angry. That is my mode of expression.' So if someone who gets angry hits things, if it is a human being that is close to them, they might actually hit someone, and hurt someone. So please be mindful that whenever you expressing your emotions, you are not expressing them in a way that hurts, anyone, including yourself.
When you are expressing pain, especially when it comes after a loss. You need to realise that sometimes the cry, can be a sense of relief. It can give you respite from the overwhelming emotions the tsunami that you're going through.
Of course I had lost my father. And every time I thought perhaps this could be changed, it dawned on me that no, it seemed to be a permanent thing.
Crying was a way that I expressed that pain. And there were also moments where it came as sobs and moments where the cry was the loud, ugly cry. Crying has helped a great deal.
So if today you are feeling down, because of a loss you have experienced. If today you feel you need a moment to cry. If today you feel that there is a need for you to express your emotions that have been pent up, or that are building up, feel free to cry.
I recognise that some cultures do not support crying. Also, there are some reservations when it comes to crying, especially among certain genders. We have seen that in many statements like 'Men don't cry. 'Boys Don't Cry', 'Be a man, man up. But that only leads to suppressed and repressed emotions.
If you are a mum, there is also a bit of guilt when it comes to crying. People think that if you cry in front of your children, it scars you for life and it scars them for life. Well, there are two ways to look at it. When you cry in front of your children. You show your humanity. You also realise that you can express yourself in front of them. But then you also are able to teach them that they can express their emotions. They know that there are moments of sadness and joy and anger and fear. But if they do not know how to express it, they might build the emotions up in such a way that it might cause them distress. This is such a great way of building their emotional resilience.
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Don't forget to subscribe, and please give us a review as we would like to know your thoughts. Share this with someone. You never know whose life you will be impacted by letting them know that it's okay to express their emotions, even if they feel the need to cry. Take care.
More information on wellbeing at www.drdunni.com
