Energy in Motion: Why Crying is Essential to our Health

Photo Credit: Karola G on Pexels

We are made of energy that moves. Our bodies have energy running through and around our physical presence and it is meant to be in constant motion. Our emotions are energy and that is what we feel when we experience various sensations in our body. The heart has an electromagnetic field surrounding it that is larger than that of the brain. That is why we feel heartache or love physically in our chest around the heart. Emotions exist in energy throughout the body, rather than coming from the brain. Emotions aren’t thoughts, they are energy.

When we hold emotions in our body, that energy can linger. If we do not allow the energy to move through us, it can end up becoming stuck in our physical body and begin to cause issues. It’s like when we breathe deeply, and we feel our body relax, when we allow ourselves to feel the emotions, we feel relief. I remember being at a seminar once with a group of women. We were sharing a lot of deep feelings and at the end of the session, there was one woman who, on her way out of the building, caught the heel of her foot on the door causing a painful gash. You could see and feel her frustration at herself and she was really in a lot of pain. As I left to go to my car, she came out behind me limping and you could tell she was in a state. Something inspired me to ask her if I could give her a hug. The moment I embraced her, I could feel the tension leave her body immediately as she allowed my loving energy to comfort her. She expressed how she was just dealing with a lot of stuff and this accident was just the trigger to bring out her frustration. She cried as I held her and I could sense her energy changing. She thanked me and said she felt more calm and was able to drive home in a better state.

Crying is the body’s way of releasing energy we resist. It’s unfortunate that society sees crying as a weakness. I know of so many people, myself included, that resist letting tears flow so they don’t create drama or make others uncomfortable. I spent a lot of my childhood crying alone in my room because of it. I never allowed myself the gift of comfort from anyone. And as I learned more and more about energy and healing, I discovered that crying is probably the most effective way of releasing emotions I’ve held onto for too long. It’s also physically beneficial because crying releases oxytocin and endorphins, which can ease both physical and emotional pain and promote a sense of calm and well-being. Crying can help us process our emotions and allow that energy to move through our body.

I’ve heard many teachers talk about the importance of allowing our emotions to move through our body rather than sitting with them too long. It’s important to acknowledge them, and be patient with ourselves to allow healing to take place, but it's just as important to release them too.

You can think of healing taking place over time, not as a line, but as a spiral. When we experience something that is wounding for us, it triggers emotional energy that rises up in our body, like a point on the spiral. As time moves around, we will eventually reach that same point again on the circle, except this time we will be a bit farther out on the spiral. We revisit the wounding, but it is less intense and allows us the opportunity to heal some more, much like a tree continues to grow creating rings, but you can see spots around a wound where a spot becomes a knot in the wood. Time will continue to spiral around and around and each time we reach the same point, we are further away again, and revisiting the wound becomes less and less triggering, and more healing. We aren’t going backwards like it might seem if we looked at time as a line, rather we are simply coming back around to an experience we can face with a different perspective as we continue to learn and grow. 

Part of healing old wounds is allowing the energy to move as we progress forward on the spiral of time. If we hold onto those wounds, we bring them with us and that knot in the wood gets bigger and bigger becoming a visible hole in the bark. If we allow the energy to move through us, we can release it and allow the wound to shrink each time we circle back to it. Crying is a great way to release that energy so we can move forward and put our energy towards things that create joy and happiness. 

So if you find yourself on the verge of tears, let them flow. Close your eyes and imagine yourself releasing the energy. Pay attention to where you feel the emotional pain in your body and allow yourself to relax into it. Know that crying is a sacred part of healing because it allows your body to process your emotional energy. And if you find yourself getting frustrated that the sadness seems to be lasting too long, understand that you are exactly where you need to be on your spiral, and honour the process of healing. If you allow the energy to move through you, it will dissipate with divine timing, and each step you take to face it, will bring growth and wisdom. 

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Please note: sometimes we experience pretty big events that can overwhelm us. If you need support at any point, please find it. There are many professionals out there with tools to help. We aren’t meant to do this alone and some things are too big for just tears. So please make sure you reach out in those moments where you really need it.