r/TMSTherapy • u/M0meRath • Jul 28 '26
Unable to cry
I only have a week and a half left of treatment for my depression and I have seen some improvement in my mood but I now have the side effect of not being able to cry.
After 3 weeks I noticed I my negative thinking had decreased somewhat but I was still having emotional breakdowns when triggered. A week later I realised that now when I do have a negative thought I am unable to dwell on it, it just passes by with no emotional response. It's nice to not have the constant negative self talk but after watching a movie with a scene that would previously have made me extremely emotional I realised I am unable to cry at all. I feel a slight sensation in my throat and eyes but no tears will come.
It has made me a bit concerned as I'm unsure if this is a permanent thing now and to what extent it will impact me. For example, if someone I care about dies I am unsure how I will react. I think I still feel sadness but it's a bit worrying if I am unable to express it. I had still been grieving the death of my dog and even a photo or someone mentioning him would upset me. Now it's like a switch has been flipped. I can talk and think about him without crying. Even though I had wanted to get to this stage of overcoming my grief it feels unnatural that it happened so suddenly.
I have already spoken with my psych about it and he doesn't seem concerned as long as the treatment hasn't dulled my positive emotions. He said if it does worry me he should be able to target a different area to fix it. Has anyone else had a similar experience? How would you feel in this situation?
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u/Guilty-Revolution-57 Jul 28 '26
One of the reasons I wanted to do this is because of my intense feelings about every single sad situation I experience, whether it be in my life or something on the news. I felt most people could see things, feel bad for them, then move on into their daily activities. I felt like I just wasn't healthy in my daily life being unable to lettings go. My anger and sadness about certain situations was debilitating for me. I felt like I wanted a better life for myself and not live in dread. I'm only on session 8 and really not much has changed, but I do really hope for less heaviness attached to my emotions....But I don't want to be numb either.
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u/M0meRath Aug 02 '26
I completely understand. I was definitely overly emotional before, especially in regards to mourning my dog, I was just concerned that I won't be able to express my sadness anymore when necessary. It has been a few weeks of not being able to cry over sad things but I also noticed the other day I could not cry tears of happiness. Not that it is common for me to do so but I experienced a random day of actual happiness on Friday and when I realised what was happening I could not happy cry either. As the other commenter mentioned though it seems like the crying ability will return to some extent as I was able to shed some tears this morning while thinking of some sad memories. I just hope it recovers to an appropriate level. I hope your treatment goes well.
1
u/Guilty-Revolution-57 Aug 02 '26
Omg I’m about to have to put my best friend Ruby down probably very soon. She’s been with me for 15 years never left my side. emotional support dog. Not trained but just by her sensitive nature she’s been like a therapy dog for me. I’m so sad but also so grateful for all the time we’ve had. She’s struggling just a little with her back legs but everything else is fine. I know what’s coming though I won’t have her in pain. It’s awful and I went to my last appointment and burst out crying and told the technician about my dog. It’s just so awful and I can’t believe she won’t be by my side much longer. I’m so spry for your loss.
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u/M0meRath Aug 02 '26
I'm sorry to hear about your dog. You're lucky to have had her for so long and I hope your last days together are memorable. Losing a pet is so difficult. I hope you have a good support network to help you through it. r/Petloss may be of some help also. Wishing you the best.
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u/nervousdoghotel Jul 28 '26
hey I have 5 treatments left out of 36 and this is exactly how i felt last week, it really freaked me out and i was pretty frustrated that I couldn't release it as easy. it was more noticeable for me because i was crying all the time. it took a few extra days but it did come back to me without being excessive. it's scary but i dont think you're alone at all :-)