I never cry

[sdjeff]

Like the title says, I never cry. no matter how depresed I get, not one tear. The more depessed I get the less I feel and the more apathetic I become. I haven't cried in at least 15 years and sometimes I wish I could.

Right now I feel so sad and I just don't care all that much.

Anyone heard if this or have the same problem?

[liveoak]

I don't cry either. I think it's because I'm so pumped full of psychotropic meds.

[FireBird]

I hardly ever cry. Even while suicidal I still don't cry or even show a sad face. It always appears that I am happy when I'm not. I smile and laugh at everything even if it isn't funny.

[mrsloony]

people often assume depression is a bad case of the blues with lots of sadness and tears.

at my absolute worst, i never cried- it was like nothing was sad really- i just felt empty and vacant. like i was merely taking up space.

as you say- apathetic is a good word.

[SunshineOutside]

I never cried after my mother died when I was ten.

Group therapy helped me get more in touch with my feelings and I had a safe place to express them. It was kind of weird then, actually.

I was really sad the other day and lay down on my bed. I think that I unconsciously try to be less conscious of what I'm feeling.

I draw more into myself to be less conscious of the pain and yet,. at the same time, since I am shutting down myself without realizing it, it may create or reinforce even clinical depression.

Okay..I'm coming out of the Twilight Zone...

Glad to cry,

Sunshine Outside

[null0trooper]

Like the title says, I never cry. no matter how depressed I get, not one tear. The more depressed I get the less I feel and the more apathetic I become. I haven't cried in at least 15 years and sometimes I wish I could.

Right now I feel so sad and I just don't care all that much.

Anyone heard if this or have the same problem?

Number One reason many depressed folks don't get treatment until it's nearly too late to expect remission:

"It's not like I wake up crying every day or anything. I just feel too crappy to care about anything much."

Anhedonia, chronic hyper/insomnia, leaden paralysis/exhaustion/anergia... That's still depression, maybe dysthymia if it's persistent but never overly disruptive of a normal life. And it's not even about being out of touch with your feelings, as psychologists and therapist like to presume; there just isn't enough energy or motivation to feel them if they exist.

[Sophia]

I've cried twice that I can remember in the last thirty years, when each of my cats died. Otherwise, I haven't cried, no matter how down I was. For me, I think it's because when I was beaten by my brother when I was little, it only made matters worse if I cried, so I stopped doing it when I hurt, and I guess I just kind of generalized it to all kinds of pain.

Sophia

[adc]

I only cry when I'm angry... and around that time I have need to get violent. And if I control myself, then I start to cry....

[Jane Approximately]

I had a similar problem for a long time - probably due to meds. I couldn't cry. There were times I desperately wanted to, but simply couldn't. It seemed at those times like crying would provide some sort of release, but I was not capable of it.

Anyway, like I said... probably meds.

Best wishes to you

[another one ...]

I don't cry either, I guess for me it is the fear that I may never stop.

[sdjeff]

Thanks to all of you for your replies. It helps to know I'm not alone in this. Sometimes I would find myself close to crying. Usually in the hospital. I would try because it would (at least to me) legitimize my being there.

It seems wrong in some way to tell my parents I'm suicidal and need to go to the ER with a completely blank face. I just wish I could show more emotion in general.

[null0trooper]

It seems wrong in some way to tell my parents I'm suicidal and need to go to the ER with a completely blank face. I just wish I could show more emotion in general.

Ask your doctor or therapist about that. My gut instinct is that they'll say that people in that condition are more often the ones with a plan, and the backup planning to make it happen.

[Arlie]

I haven't had a problem crying appropriately for a few years.

However, I found that unleashing another emotion usually had a domino effect.

What I mean it, if you found a movie or joke or something that had you laughing from your gut, I bet the tears would take over - the laughing just starts an emotional dam bursting.

My doc and I reduced my two meds lately - and I am more sensitive and can cry more easily,but they are not the long awful meltdowns I used to have. Yet a good friend thinks the med reduction has been bad for me.

I like feeling more alive instead of flat...I'll trade being more prone to crying than being flat any day.

[Reborn]

I don't cry when I'm depressed either. My tears are usually replaced by rage or sheer indifference.

When I was a kid/teenager I did cry. The tears came up fast, and I could not stop them. It usually led me to run away from wherever I was and hide. I guess that changed sometime in between. I'm fearless when I'm depressed now and very reckless.

[GroovyGwen]

Jeez people. I cry all the damn time. I am able to get in touch with my feelings (gag) enough to actually feel my pain. I know what you all mean about not being able to. It's that disconnect that is prevalent in depression. Not caring. Apathetic enertia.

Certain meds I've been on have made it so I couldn't cry. I think Lithium. Maybe Neurotin. Something I'm not currently on. That's frustrating. I've always been a huge cryer, shedding tears at movies, in discussions, at the drop of a hat, stubbing my toe... It would probably be good if I just didn't take things so personally, but I need to make my life better. I don't cry when I'm hyper. I laugh until I cry maybe.

I want to go to the beach.