Crying Spells in Adults: Causes, Symptoms, and Support Strategies

October 13, 2025

Authored by: Eilaf Meenai, MD

Edited by: Jemma Strain, B.S. Psychology

Crying is a natural way to release sadness, grief, frustration, and sometimes even joy. It’s part of being emotionally alive.

A large international study found that people report crying anywhere from one to ten times per month. In the United States, women reported crying an average of 3.5 times a month, while men reported 1.9 times, both higher than the global averages of 2.7 for women and 1 for men.¹

However, when crying becomes too frequent, intense, or difficult to control, it may no longer be a healthy outlet for emotions. Rather, it could signal an underlying issue that should be treated.

On this page, you will learn what can cause frequent or prolonged crying spells, the physical and emotional conditions linked to them, and the best ways to manage them.

What Are Crying Spells?

Crying spells are episodes of intense tearful behavior. Emotional crying is a widespread human behavior studied across ages and cultures and is often a meaningful response to life events. However, when crying becomes involuntary and much more frequent, it requires attention.

Adult crying spells are not officially listed as a diagnostic feature in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) – the manual clinicians use to identify mental health conditions.

However, they are considered an important sign in many psychological assessments. For example, the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) includes a question about how often a person has had crying spells in the past week.² Similarly, Beck’s Depression Inventory (BDI) asks people to rate how much they cry.³

Common Causes of Crying in Adults

While crying is normal and healthy, frequently crying uncontrollably may be a sign that something is wrong. There is often a medical or mental health reason why it happens. These reasons include:

Depression

Depression is a well-recognized cause of frequent and uncontrollable crying spells in adults. Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a mood condition that affects the feelings, thoughts, and day-to-day functioning of a person. One of its key emotional symptoms is persistent sadness and tearfulness without a clear reason.

People with depression have changes in areas of the brain involved in emotion processing, such as the amygdala, anterior cingulate cortex, and prefrontal cortex. These changes affect how we perceive emotional experiences and how strongly we react to them.⁴ When these systems are imbalanced, emotional responses like crying can become exaggerated.

Also, serotonin is a neurotransmitter long studied in relation to depression, and it appears to have a role in emotional stability. When serotonin function is altered, tearful responses are more likely.

Anxiety Disorders

Anxiety disorders can also lead to crying spells. People with anxiety are more likely to interpret stress as dangerous, which keeps their emotional systems more reactive. A study of adult crying behavior found that anxiety has a direct positive effect on crying through two paths:

Feelings of personal threat
Sadness

So, people with high anxiety levels tend to feel more vulnerable and sad about things, which pushes them closer to crying.⁵

What’s more, many people with anxiety describe crying during or after panic attacks, or crying because they feel overwhelmed by the fear inside them.

Burnout

Burnout is emotional exhaustion from long-term stress. It is caused by chronic, unmanaged stress, where people feel constant pressure without enough rest or support.

When someone is emotionally exhausted, their capacity to regulate stress and negative emotions becomes weaker. Their internal “bucket” of resources for coping with crying spells tends to be depleted. Naturally, people have less resilience against added stressors when burned out, so small irritating events can tip them into crying.

A study of blue-collar workers found that chronic burnout (lasting at least six months) was connected to increased physical tension, sleep problems, waking up already tired, and elevated cortisol (a stress hormone) in saliva.⁶ Crying is a natural outlet for such emotional and physical symptoms.

Furthermore, several studies of healthcare workers in stressful settings found high levels of burnout along with symptoms of depression, anxiety, and insomnia.⁷ These overlapping emotional disorders themselves can cause crying spells.

Hormonal Changes

Hormonal changes can have a surprisingly strong influence on emotions.

Many women report feeling more tearful in the days before their period (in the luteal phase) or during menstruation. The drop in estrogen just before menses is thought to reduce the stabilizing influence on mood. It also increases vulnerability to irritability and emotional reactivity. A study found that women report a greater desire to cry in the premenstrual and menses phases compared to mid-cycle phases.⁸

Menopause and the transition into it (perimenopause) is another period with strong hormonal influence on emotions. Crying episodes are common during the early stages of menopause. Once postmenopause sets in and hormones settle, the frequency of crying typically decreases.

In the postpartum period, the sudden and dramatic drop in hormones after childbirth is one factor believed to contribute to “postpartum blues,” with crying as a symptom.⁹

Grief and Unresolved Trauma

Grief often starts with numbness or disbelief. Over time, it can shift to deep sadness, longing, regret, or sometimes guilt. Crying is one of the most common ways the body shows this sadness. Memories, anniversaries, or certain places or smells can suddenly trigger overwhelming emotion, leading to crying spells.

Also, past traumatic experiences such as abuse, accidents, violence, or neglect make a person more vulnerable to crying. When trauma is unresolved, the emotional system remains on high alert. Anything that triggers feelings of fear can lead to uncontrollable crying.

Sometimes, people suppress their feelings of grief because it hurts too much. Over time, though, that suppression builds up emotional pressure that can result in unexpected crying spells that seem to occur without any reason.

Pseudobulbar Affect

Pseudobulbar affect is a neurological condition in which people have sudden, uncontrollable outbursts of crying or laughter.¹⁰ It happens in people who have brain injuries or certain neurological diseases. For example, it can follow a stroke, traumatic brain injury (TBI), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), multiple sclerosis (MS), Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, or other forms of dementia.

In this condition, the crying spells tend to be short (seconds to a few minutes), sudden, and disproportionate to what triggered them. Between episodes, mood is relatively normal. Fortunately, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has now approved one of the first medications that treat pseudobulbar effect.¹¹

Medication Side Effects

Some medications make people feel more emotionally vulnerable. Sometimes, this side effect fades over time, but in many cases, the medication has to be stopped.

Medications that impact brain chemicals tied to mood are commonly reported to affect emotions. Anti-depressants like selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) can cause crying spells in some people.

Researchers in a study collected experiences from people who believed their SSRI caused emotional side effects. Some described crying more often or being more tearful than before, or feeling overwhelmed by feelings.¹²

Some medications also have emotional side effects during withdrawal (when tapering off). Antidepressant withdrawal is reported to cause crying spells.

Recognizing the Symptoms of Crying Spells

Everyone cries from time to time. But crying spells occur without an identifiable cause and tend to interfere with a person’s daily life. Here are some symptoms that indicate crying spells:

Crying more often than usual
Crying without an obvious reason
Difficulty controlling emotional tears once crying starts
Crying in inappropriate settings, such as at work, in public, or during normal conversations
Crying interferes with daily activities
Feeling emotionally drained afterward
Sudden mood changes
Feeling embarrassed about crying because of not being able to understand why it keeps happening

The Emotional and Social Impact of Crying Spells

Uncontrollable crying can leave people feeling exhausted. Each episode demands physical and psychological energy, leading to fatigue afterward. The loss of control over one’s emotions can also lead to feelings of shame. People may start questioning their strength and internalizing guilt for something that is beyond conscious control.

Crying spells can also create tension in relationships. Many times, the people around a person will struggle to understand the intensity and frequency of crying episodes. The person experiencing the spells may pull back socially after sensing judgment, which can lead to isolation because emotional unpredictability tends to make social interactions feel unsafe.

If episodes occur at work, people often feel embarrassed, unable to focus, or afraid that they’ll “break down” in front of others.

A study reports that while occasional crying fosters human connection, excessive crying typically results in feelings of exposure, vulnerability, and loss of dignity.¹³

Support Strategies for Crying Spells

Managing adult crying spells requires you to learn how to calm your body in the moment and how to reduce the frequency of episodes over time.

When you find yourself crying and want to stop the spell, try these quick tips:

Take slow, steady inhales through your nose and exhale gently through your mouth. Controlled breathing lowers stress.
Press your tongue gently against the roof of your mouth. It is a physical shift that redirects your focus away from emotional impulses.¹⁴
Consciously relax the muscles in your face, jaw, and throat. The lump-in-the-throat sensation happens when muscles tighten during emotional stress. Loosening these muscles signals to your body that you’re safe.
Try smiling, even slightly. Studies suggest that facial expressions can influence emotional states. When you smile, it activates neural pathways that reduce emotional intensity and can interrupt the crying reflex.

Besides those listed above, here are some coping strategies that will help to reduce the severity and frequency of your crying spells:

Stay physically active through walking, jogging, cycling, or swimming.
Maintain a consistent, healthy sleep routine.
Try practicing unwinding techniques like yoga, tai chi, or deep stretching.
Practice focused breathing or mindfulness for a few minutes daily.
Write your thoughts in a journal to process them better.

Counseling and Therapy for Emotional Distress

When crying spells are linked to an underlying condition, such as depression or anxiety, they often won’t go away on their own. In these instances, you likely need professional support to get out of them.

A trained therapist will help you identify what drives your crying spells. Once you know your triggers, it’s easier to manage them. Cognitive behavioral therapy for crying is one of the most effective approaches for this purpose. It helps people recognize thoughts that fuel emotional overreactions and replace them with more balanced ways of thinking.¹⁵

We also have talk therapy (or psychodynamic therapy), which helps when crying spells stem from unresolved grief or past trauma.

In cases where crying spells are caused by neurological conditions like pseudobulbar affect, medical treatment is needed. Neurologists prescribe medications that target the brain circuits responsible for emotional expression.

How Mission Connection Can Help

If your crying spells are linked to a mental health condition, you need prompt support. At Mission Connection, we understand how exhausting and isolating uncontrolled emotions are.

Therefore, our team of licensed therapists and mental health professionals offers evidence-based treatments that go beyond symptom relief. We focus on helping you heal at the root level.

We use a personalized approach using CBT, trauma-focused counseling, and other proven modalities to help you regain control over your emotions. With the right therapeutic support, your crying spells can decrease in frequency and intensity. Reach out today to get started.

References

Becht, M. C., & Vingerhoets, A. J. (2002). Crying and mood change: A cross-cultural study. Cognition & Emotion, 16(1), 87–101. https://doi.org/10.1080/02699930143000149
Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D), NIMH. (2020). Apa.org. https://www.apa.org/depression-guideline/epidemiologic-studies-scale.pdf
American Psychological Association. (2020). Beck depression inventory (BDI). American Psychological Association. https://www.apa.org/pi/about/publications/caregivers/practice-settings/assessment/tools/beck-depression.
Trifu, S. C., Trifu, A. C., Aluaş, E., Tătaru, M. A., & Costea, R. V. (2020). Brain changes in depression. Romanian Journal of Morphology and Embryology, 61(2), 361–370. https://doi.org/10.47162/rjme.61.2.06
Millings, A., Hepper, E. G., Hart, C. M., Swift, L., & Rowe, A. C. (2016). Holding back the tears: Individual differences in adult crying proneness reflect attachment orientation and attitudes to crying. Frontiers in Psychology, 7. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01003
Melamed, S., Ugarten, U., Shirom, A., Kahana, L., Lerman, Y., & Froom, P. (1999). Chronic burnout, somatic arousal and elevated salivary cortisol levels. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 46(6), 591–598. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0022-3999(99)00007-0
Pachi, A., Sikaras, C., Melas, D., Alikanioti, S., Soultanis, N., Ivanidou, M., Ilias, I., & Tselebis, A. (2025). Stress, anxiety and depressive symptoms, burnout and insomnia among Greek nurses one year after the end of the pandemic: A moderated chain mediation model. Journal of Clinical Medicine, 14(4), 1145. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm14041145
Romans, S, E., Clarkson, R, F., Einstein G, et al. (2017). Crying, oral contraceptive use and the menstrual cycle. Journal of Affective Disorders, 208:272-277. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2016.08.044
Osborne, L., Standeven, L. (2019). Postpartum Mood Disorders: What New Moms Need to Know. John Hopkins Medicine. https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/postpartum-mood-disorders-what-new-moms-need-to-know
Ahmed, A., Simmons, Z. (2013). Pseudobulbar affect: prevalence and management. Therapeutics and clinical risk management, 9:483-489. doi:https://doi.org/10.2147/TCRM.S53906
Cruz M, P. (2013). Nuedexta for the Treatment Of Pseudobulbar Affect: A Condition of Involuntary Crying or Laughing. Pharmacy and Therapeutics, 38(6):325. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3737988/
Price J, Cole V, Goodwin GM. (2009). Emotional side-effects of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors: qualitative study. British Journal of Psychiatry, 195(3):211-217. https://doi.org/10.1192/bjp.bp.108.051110
Sawada T, Matsuo K, Hashimoto I. (2012). Psychological effects of emotional crying in adults: Events that elicit crying and social reactions to crying. The Japanese journal of psychology, 82(6):514-522. https://doi.org/10.4992/jjpsy.82.514
Bahadur N. (2018, October 14). How to Stop Yourself From Crying. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/14/well/mind/how-to-stop-yourself-from-crying.html
Nakao M, Shirotsuki K, Sugaya N. (2015). Cognitive–behavioral Therapy for Management of Mental Health and stress-related disorders: Recent Advances in Techniques and Technologies. BioPsychoSocial Medicine, 15(1):16. doi:https://doi.org/10.1186/s13030-021-00219-w