"Have you ever cried mom," asked my six year old daughter. I laughed in disbelief! What do you mean, have I ever cried? As I have gone through life my heart has gotten softer and softer. I cry at commercials, weddings, Disney movies, when I look at my kids baby photos, listening to songs, and the list goes on. However, what I realized is that I have not modeled it for my daughter. When the tears fall, I quickly wipe them away and take a deep breath in order to regain control. I do not tell her what about it makes me cry or openly cry in front of her. Her simple question stopped me in my tracks.

As a mom I try to help my kids to see the world in a positive light, to be kind, to problem solve, to work hard, and to believe in themselves. Her question made me realize that I have been leaving out this very important lesson of teaching my children how to handle, process, and allow strong emotions. One of the best and most important ways I can do that is through modeling the behavior, and letting her know that it is ok.

We cry for so many reasons. We have happy tears when we are so filled with joy and gratitude that the tears just bubble out. We cry sad tears when our hearts are aching and the pain and sorrow has to leak out. Sometimes when we are nervous or stressed we cry and sometimes we laugh until we cry. Tears can bond us together as we console each other and tears can create space and release when we are overwhelmed.

Letting the tears fall is not only healthy emotionally, but it is healthy physically. I want to make sure that my children know that their tears are not a sign of weakness or something they need to be ashamed of, but instead that they are a healthy expression of their emotions.

Let those tears fall for happiness, for sadness, or for any other reason you feel like! It does the body and soul good.

Here is an article about the benefits of crying:

http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2009/06/06/7-good-reasons-to-cry-your-eyes-out/

-Cheers to the One Amazing You