We live in a world that defines almost everything for us. We were born into a family, a community, a society, and a world that has a pattern, and by default, we grow up with these patterns. Anytime we try to do anything against what we’ve known all our lives, we don’t only feel the struggle; we see it too. As humans, we have the right to choose, which is our greatest strength and weakness too. We are domesticated in a way that we believe it is wrong to act certain ways. It is wrong to speak certain ways, and it is also wrong to dare to be different—to be ourselves at all times.
Our world has gotten to that point where it seems like everything we’ve known since we were born till now are more lies than truth. One of those lies is the saying that “real men don’t cry and shouldn’t cry.” These days, it is a fact because most men don’t cry. Even if they do, they see it as them being weak. They fear that they are becoming like women, and they hide it as much as they can. They beat themselves up anytime they feel like crying when things feel unbearable or when they feel overwhelmed. This is one of the effects of our society on us. It is how we came to see it, and we dare not question the ancient landmarks, so we just go with the flow.
Whether you are a man or a woman, you will definitely feel the need to cry because your tears aren’t meant for decoration or something. They are linked with your emotions, and yes, it’s totally fine to cry. Of course, they have other functions, but we are going to focus on the emotional part for the sake of this post. If you feel like crying, do it because that’s your body telling you what will make you feel okay. It will also let you know when it’s becoming too much too. Your body is self-regulated, but because of our ability to choose, we can override that, which is what we do most of the time. It is good and bad, depending on how we use it and the consequences it brings to us.
If you think hiding your tears from the rest of the world is what makes you feel more like yourself, then go for it, but don’t deny yourself what you have to do just because the world doesn’t accept it. It is fine to be emotional, but trust me when I tell you your body also knows when it is time to stop. Sadly, we don’t listen to our bodies most of the time because we have overridden it so many times. The more we react in a certain way to something, we subconsciously tell our body what to do next time. So when something similar happens again, we become more receptive to it than the first time.
Crying is not a show of weakness. It is a show of how we feel. Yes, hiding it will make us stronger, but showing it won’t make us weaker. The more we condition how people should and shouldn’t react, the more we teach them how to be something they aren’t. These days, we see so many people that do things similarly because we are always striving to be someone and not ourselves. If you are someone that cries when you feel overwhelmed or hurt, that’s fine. If you don’t, that’s also fine, but don’t judge others based on yourself; we are different.
If not crying is what makes you a real man, kudos to you, and if crying doesn’t make you less of a man, kudos to you too. Do what works for you and what makes you feel like you and not like others.