How do you fit sadness into your life?

I find that when I get a sudden bought of sadness these days, my eyes almost instantly start to water. I don’t fully cry, but I get that head-stuffing feeling. This has only been the case in the last couple of years. Before I experienced depression, things did not affect me so strongly.

Now, though, I don’t know what to do with the feeling. I’m afraid to feel it fully because I’m afraid it might drag me down. Maybe I’m afraid I might cry. But I want to feel it because, well, it’s how I feel. The other thing is that when I feel this, I want to do something about it, even if it’s only to hug someone. But I don’t feel like I can stop to hug someone, and it isn’t appropriate, anyway. Sometimes I might say a few words of solace.

So what I do with it is write—maybe—or think about it, or talk about it. I imagine what it is and where it comes from. I empathize, I guess. From afar, most of the time.

How does sadness fit in your life?