Watching sad shows when you're feeling depressed in hopes that it will make you feel better sounds counterintuitive, but according to Lysn psychologist Nancy Sokarno, it's anything but. She points to a study that found that watching traumatic films can potentially boost pain tolerance and feelings of group bonding.
It can help validate our feelings
"It's not uncommon for people to watch sad films when they are already upset, gloomy or experiencing hard times," says Dr. Gregory Warwick, counselling psychologist at Quest Psychology Services.
Individuals with depressive symptoms and low self-regulation tend to engage in binge-watching to distract themselves from their negative emotions [4].
Lifelong struggles with trauma or other negative experiences may fuel an unconscious desire to continually return to the status quo of unhappiness. Some people who seem comfortable in their misery actually may be suffering from an underlying mental health disorder.
Crying in the movies is a sign that oxytocin has been triggered by the connections you feel due to vicarious social experience. Your attention is captured and emotions elicited by the movie's story.
Hear us out: Pressing play on feel-good movies (and TV shows) like Legally Blonde, Girls Trip, Mrs. Doubtfire, and Mamma Mia! can lift your spirits when you're feeling sad—and perhaps make you more positive.
Cinema therapy through a “feel-good” movie may help you perceive life differently and improve how you deal with issues. Even sad movies can affect your brain chemistry. An Oxford University study showed that watching them may boost a chemical related to pain tolerance.
“Along with the escapism, movies can [invite] your depression take a back seat. Movies can also help you release your emotions and act as a catharsis, sometimes helping you express some emotions you've been having a hard time expressing,” she says.
We also cry during movies because the brain releases oxytocin, which heightens our responses to the things around us. Researchers at the University of Tilburg in the Netherlands discovered that viewers who cried during a sad movie felt more relaxed afterwards.
Movies can boost mood and improve mental health:
Watch a movie or Netflix maybe? Psychological research and therapeutic practitioners verify that watching movies is one of the best ways to deal with anxiety or depression.
Parents need to know that death is the main theme of this movie. Vada's mother died while giving birth to her (this is never depicted; only alluded to). A main character dies tragically from bee stings (again, the death is off screen). This sudden, unexpected death is bound to have an emotional impact on…
Emotional Damage. - The Dictator (2012) | By The Best Movie Lines | Facebook.
There is, in fact, a scientifically verified saddest movie of all time. It's called The Champ (1979), and it is heartrending. But before we get into that, you may wonder how (and why) science weighed in on this. Behavior researchers need to be able to manipulate their subjects' emotions for a lot of reasons.
Weepies, as they used to be called in the classic Hollywood era, remain a popular genre to this day, and many of them rank among the best movies of all time. But why do we like putting ourselves through the emotional wringer?
When dealing with psychological or emotional stress, the body tends to crave sweet foods. Craving carbohydrates, or other sugary foods, can be the brain's way to self-soothe depressive feelings. This explains why a person might want something sweet to calm their nerves at the end of a tough day.
Choosing to suffer can serve social goals; it can display how tough we are or serve as a cry for help. Emotions such as anger and sadness can provide certain moral satisfactions. And effort and struggle and difficulty can, in the right contexts, lead to the joys of mastery and flow.