There was a time when a good cry could solve almost any problem. Touchy parents, touchier boyfriends, exasperating friends...a book that made you think too much, a song that reminded you of lost love, a film that had a sorry little kid... a directionless career, no money to buy that beer, a dysfunctional air-conditioner...headaches, fevers, pms, or just plain irritation. Mothers on soppy operas or melodrama in films would always tell you to not hold back and lighten the "dil ka bojh". Rudimentary psychology. Sitting on even the most expensive couches in the world you would be counseled to do pretty much the same - let it out of your system.
Then one day the bulwarks of capitalism invented retail therapy – and all you ever needed was a good buy (and of course a credit card). Sometimes a donut would do the trick, other times you needed a sexy little dress (which you would perhaps never wear). The amount you spent was inversely proportional to your bank balance, but it assuaged the emotions. Sooner (much sooner) than later, it made you pay a huge price. And, therefore, many many more tears.
Till the arrival of the digital age. So that smart mobile phone/tablet/computer you bought on your last binge could be turned into a cheaper, easier outlet. Let it out into the world…spread/share the misery, take solace in the agony of others, feel relieved when someone “likes” your status and adds her little two-bit… give some experienced advice of your own, post that sad number or that morbid Nietzsche quote…compare your pics and comment on how fat you look now till someone (preferable plural) tells you how beautifully anaemic you are…
Though the fate of the retail cries still remains uncertain, once you usher in the age of Facebook therapy, you will never rue the day you said goodbye to those headache inducing, puffy-eye giving, pillow wetting teary habits.
