Reflex Tears vs Emotional Tears

Basal tears are present all the time in healthy eyes, they come in two different types, reflex and emotional tears. Both of those types of tears are actually good for us. Reflex tears are the same as basal tears, but when our eyes get irritated, basal tear production goes into overdrive in the effort to safely flush out whatever was causing the problem. That is why we tear up when cutting up onions or when we get something in our eyes. Sometimes crying and then feeling refreshed and more positive about life afterwards is a good feeling, even though nothing really changed about the situation we started to cry for in the first place. Emotional tears actually clear out chemicals that build up in times of stress. It doesn’t just release pent-up emotion, it also purges harmful chemicals and triggers pain-regulating hormones. Which is why we feel better after crying.