Had a convo with my neighbor that made me rethink public crying

Last week my neighbor across the hall caught me sobbing in the stairwell after a bad phone call with my mom. I expected her to pretend she didn't see me, but instead she sat down and said "crying in public is just recycling emotions the wrong way." She told me she cries on the bus all the time, like once a week for the past 5 years, because holding it in makes her headaches worse. It hit different because I've always believed you hide tears at all costs, that it's weak or attention-seeking. Now I'm wondering if I've been making myself more miserable by hiding. Has anyone else had a moment where someone just normalized your ugly crying?

2 comments

2 Comments

rodriguez.diana15d ago

Hold up... once a week for 5 whole years? That's like 260 bus rides of crying... I can't even imagine being that open about it.

the_charlie15d ago

Honestly, that "recycling emotions" line is wild but it kind of clicked for me. Once I just let myself tear up on a park bench instead of ducking into a bathroom stall, I felt like I actually processed it and moved on instead of letting it fester all day.