Watching Sad Movies Can Really Make You Happy

Medical Video: 100% sure you will cry after watching this video

Watching sad movies, usually drama films, can make someone cry and drift into emotion. Sometimes it also makes a person remember old memories that make overflowing emotions become increasingly.

But it turns out, often watching sad movies does not only make someone cry and come to feel emotion.Quoted from Elite DailyWhen watching movies that have emotional content, like a very sad movie, our brain releases oxytocin (a hormone that behaves as a neurotransmitter in the brain). Oxytocin is what helps us connect with other people and encourages us to become individuals who are more empathetic, loving, and trusting.

Neuroeconomists at Claremont Graduate School and also experts in oxytocin, Paul J. Zak, say oxytocin makes us more sensitive to social activities around us. In many situations, social activity encourages us to try to help others when they really need our help.

"So, go watch a movie, laugh and cry. "It is good for your brain, and can encourage you to make positive changes in your life as well as in other people's lives," Zak said.

Why watching sad movies can actually make you happy?

As reported Greatist, Zak also said, usually watching sad movies will make us trained to be able to be more empathetic to others, while training the brain to release oxytocin. This is the reason why you or many other people love watching sad movies.

However, based on another study, as described by clinical psychologists, Jessica Magidson, often watching sad movies can also make us feel happier.

"The first reason is because the film encourages us to reflect on ourselves and feel grateful for what we can in life, and establish relationships better than what happens to the characters in the film," said Jessica.

Jessica's opinion was also reinforced by the opinions of other experts, such as Silvia Knobloch-Westerwick, Ph.D., as written in PsychCentral. Silvia said that people tend to use tragedies that occur in other people (or in fim) as a way of reflecting important relationships in their lives.

"This helps to calculate our grace and gratitude. What's interesting is that those who were sad when watching a sad movie can still get a boost of happiness afterwards, because of this great gratitude, "said Silvia.

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