Top 11 Tips on How to Make Yourself Cry

Let go of societal conditioning

Society has always taught us that crying is a sign of weakness and that brave people don’t cry. This conditioning has always been tougher on men, because we live in a sexist society and men are supposed to be tough and strong. However, the truth is that every human being needs to cry. It’s a very healthy way of venting your emotions.

Understand why you don’t cry

The reasons could be several. The biggest reason of course is societal conditioning. Other reasons include:

• Harboring negative thoughts about crying which can be due to some past trauma;

• You aren’t an expressive person and find it difficult to express your pain through tears;

• Crying just doesn’t make sense to you;

• You have been desensitized to a limit where nothing moves you emotionally.

Figuring out why you’re unable to cry is important if you want to genuinely work on how to make yourself cry.

A fountain of tears isn’t what you should aim at

Be realistic. If you’re just trying out this method, then you can’t expect yourself to cry a river from the get go. Keep your target small – aim at a max of maybe 1-2 tears out of your eyes. That’s way more than enough for a beginner to go on.

Grab a hanky and wipe your tears

I know, I know. You’re not crying. But this technique is a great way to trick your brain into believing that you’re actually feeling sad or hurt, which in turn just might open up the water works! Obviously, this won’t happen in the first few goes; you need to keep at it. Things like these take time.

Practice a lot and have patience

Practice makes perfect, after all. And this is not the type of exercise where the results will be immediate – it will take a lot of time and patience to achieve what you want.

Think about stuff that makes you sad

The sob back story of physically disabled children or deaths of good characters on TV may not work on you when it comes to how to make yourself cry. Don’t worry! Try to think about the death of an animal, like a dog, in a movie or TV show. More people tend to feel sorry for animals than humans, anyway. If you think that won’t work on you, then watch Hachi: A Dog's Tale and let us know how you feel!

Write down your feelings

Sometimes, penning your thoughts and emotions can give you a new perspective about them. How are you feeling? Why are you feeling like this? What’s the source of your emotions? Write in as much detail as you can, including stuff that embarrasses you, annoys you, hurts you, etc. The more you write, the more your emotions will surface.

Stare without blinking

The longer you avoid blinking your eyes, the more the chances are of your eyes watering. See the thing is, our eyes need to be lubricated on a regular basis so as to avoid becoming dry. And since you won’t blink and let your eyes be lubricated, your body finds another way to fix this problem – by producing tears. Obviously, this is not a technique that would work in crowds. It’s best to practice this at home first to get comfortable with your tears.

Talk to people online

Many people find it easier to vent their true feelings to complete strangers. I mean, come on. Isn’t it easier to just cry in front of someone you know you’ll never meet and doesn’t know who you are than doing the same in front of someone who knows you and may judge you for being “weak”?

Cry with a friend

Sometimes you need a helping hand to guide you through when you’re working on how to make yourself cry. Bring along a friend you trust the most – perhaps your best friend. Sit down and explain the situation to her. Since she knows you the best, she will be able to tell you things that make you sad or things that you may have not realized yourself. Perhaps discuss a past trauma that you’ve buried, or that one time you got so angry that you almost cried. Or you two can even watch a sad movie and cry together. Whatever you’re more comfortable with!

Try therapy

Sometimes, you need to bring in the help of professionals to learn how to make you cry and vent all those emotions. There may be a deep set psychological barrier in your mind that may be preventing you from healthily expressing your emotions. In such a case, no amount of self help books, blogs or articles will help you.