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Monday, April 9, 2012

Why does your Heart Hurt when you Cry?

Why does your heart hurt when you cry?

So the hubby and I had a spontaneous date night this evening and met at the movie theater after work so we could see The Hunger Games movie...



Now I had devoured all three books in a single weekend shortly after I got my Kindle Fire for Christmas... (That device is a wonder you no longer do you have to wait to get a book, two seconds after you finish one book you can download the sequel and keep right on going - as long as it is published of course. I have to limit my reading of certain books till the weekend as I have been known to stay up reading until my battery dies.)  Anyhow, I absolutely loved The Hunger Games books and I have been looking forward to seeing the movie, and not just cause I think Lenny K is one of the sexiest men on the planet, either. 




One of the most touching scenes in the first book is the death of a young tribute, as did the book, the movie reduced me to tears.  Well I did my best not to sob out loud during the movie but I must say it was a real effort and even as I left the theater I could feel the ache in my chest from that scene.  Now when I cry from anger it is a frustrated emotional outburst that usually leaves me feeling sad and a bit depressed that I gave someone or thing that much power over me and my emotions.  A heartbreak cry is a different beast, it tends to leave me purged of emotion cleansed in a way, even though the ache may still linger.  I have to wonder have they done studies to determine why your heart / solar plexus actually ache when you experience emotions in that range.  Do we create this ache to justify the tears, am I just drawing on old memories stimulated by similar situations, or do they go hand in hand each part of the process. 

I turned to my faithful friend Wikipedia for an answer to my question,

Psychological and neurological understanding


Apparently, I am not alone in question, however, I have no answer other than to say when we experience loss we feel the pain but why specific body parts are involved is still a bit of a mystery.  

If you read or saw The Hunger Games what was your experience with the scene that I am trying not to spoil for others.  Did you have an emotional reaction?  Did you feel a connection to the characters? If you did connect, was there a specific life event that you felt reminded of as you experience the emotions?

My answer would be yes to all three questions.

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