Can You Cry In Your Sleep?

Yes, you can cry in your sleep.

Crying during sleep, including shedding tears and making sounds, is a phenomenon that can occur for various reasons, often linked to emotional or psychological states experienced during dreaming or sleep stages.

Why Do People Cry In Their Sleep?

According to Dr. Mia Zaharna, a sleep physician, crying while sleeping is a normal response. It's often tied to what you are experiencing emotionally or psychologically while you sleep.

• Emotional Processing: Sleep is a time when the brain processes emotions and experiences from the day. Strong feelings can manifest physically, even during unconscious states.
• Dreams and Nightmares: Crying in sleep is frequently associated with intense or disturbing dreams (nightmares). The emotions felt within the dream, such as sadness, fear, or distress, can trigger a physical crying response. As Dr. Zaharna notes, "It can be a normal part of nightmares or dreams on occasion."
• Underlying Stress or Anxiety: Just as with waking life, sleep can reflect your emotional state. "Crying, even in sleep, can be a normal response to grief, stress, or anxiety," says Dr. Zaharna. These feelings can be processed during sleep and lead to crying.
• Grief: Experiencing grief can profoundly impact sleep and dreams, sometimes leading to crying episodes during the night as the brain works through the loss.

While occasional crying in sleep is generally considered normal, frequent or intense episodes might warrant exploring the underlying causes, such as high stress levels or recurring nightmares.

Common Triggers for Sleep Crying

Here's a quick look at triggers mentioned:

Understanding that crying in sleep is possible and often linked to emotional processing can help individuals and their partners approach this phenomenon with less alarm.