I'm not crying, that's just rain on my face!

While ironically funny, the above expression shows how some people deal with the body's biological reflex to an intense emotion. By definition, 'cry is from the Latin quiritare, to make a public outcry', which could relate to many different emotions, eg. sadness, frustration, anger. We often cry because we are trying to deal with a complex emotion and our brains react to this by releasing moisture from the eyes. It is a completely natural and biological action, therefore why are so many of us afraid of it?

Of course there is the stereotypical view that crying is a woman's game, as they are the most emotional sex and therefore men do not cry. Ever. However, some people consider the act of crying to be a weakness or an embarrassment. Granted not all tears are the same, sometimes uncontrollable sobbing can be quite dramatic and and so we may wish to cry in private, however the act can also be therapeutic. Directly linked to the grieving process, crying can help us to deal with our feelings of loss or bitterness as bottling up our tears can often lead to more sorrow and confusion.

Often tears can be created from the emotions and experience of others. For example, when we watch a sad film, or listen to a moving piece of music. This is of course different for each person and is subjective. While one might find a film heartbreaking another might not. In a debate with friends, some said that they can only follow a story emotionally if they can personally connect with the events that unfold. Only then may they feel emotional enough to cry. As a person who has no reservations about crying and often feels better after a small sob, during sad films my tears flow freely. Therefore a decent acting performance and a compelling storyline can send me sobbing, whether I can directly relate to the characters or not. Sometimes however if we expect a film to be really sad, it often doesn't live up to our expectations and we are left wondering why. Again it's just subjective!

I think it all comes down to control. Are we in control of our emotions? Even though crying is a biological reaction, some would say that we are in control of cour minds and bodies so we can control how we feel. I think some people are obviously better at this than others. I believe that if something is trying to escape than why fight it? Why be afraid or ashamed of it? Why justify it? Finally, do not be afraid of your tears. As Ryan Seacrest says, 'It's okay to cry, It's because you care.'