Why do your eyes water when you yawn?

+14 votes
asked Apr 29, 2018 in Health & Wellness by lakeiya (1,000 points)
edited Apr 12, 2019
Why do your eyes water when you yawn? I am often asked if I have been crying right after yawning. My eyes water up so much every time I yawn. What can cause this? Should I quit drinking so much water? I know most people don’t have this problem because my whole family does not have this problem. What is wrong with me?

3 Answers

+16 votes
answered Jun 22, 2019 by Shantel (620 points)
edited Aug 2, 2019

Everyone’s eyes water when they yawn. Some people just have more prominent watering of the eyes. The watering of the eyes when you yawn is because of your lacrimal glands and the glands’ ducts.

Tears are created in the lacrimal glands in order to protect your eyes from becoming dry. It is kind of like your mouth creating saliva so you don’t have a constant dry mouth. Tears are constantly being processed, although some actions force the glands to process more at certain times; such as when you cry. An overproduction of tears (like when crying) can also make your nose run because the ducts actually connect to your nasal passages.

Perhaps you have an issue with dry eye and your glands are doing extra work and producing extra tears to protect your eye. When you yawn, the pressure could be releasing these extra tears. Regardless, you are not the only one who has this issue. It is actually quite common and normal. If you are very concerned about this problem, talk to your doctor (or ophthalmologist) about your concerns.

Reference: http://www.lasikmd.com/blog/eyes-water-yawn/

+4 votes
answered Apr 28, 2019 by J (860 points)
edited May 1, 2019
Why do your eyes water when you yawn? Your eyes are probably dry or you are overly tired. When your eyes get super dry, you get more tears. You might have to see an eye doctor in case you have something called dry eye syndrome. I’ve seen commercials that advertise the dry eye problem. If you do, it says your eyes could start becoming painful. See your eye doctor!
+1 vote
answered Jun 9, 2018 by lisan (680 points)
edited Mar 23, 2019
My eyes do the same thing and it is so damn irritating that having everyone ask me “What’s wrong?” Nothing is wrong. My eyes just freak out when I yawn. I don’t know but I would like it to go away so I can quit having to explain that I am ok.
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