There are 3 types of tears; basal, reflex, and emotional. Basal tears act as a constant shield between your eye and the world, keeping dirt away. Reflex tears are formed when your eyes need to wash away harmful irritants like smoke or onion fumes. They contain antibodies to fight bacteria. Then you have emotional tears. Produced as a response to sadness, fear, and joy, these tears contain hormones and proteins not present in basal or reflex tears. It’s been a tough year. Cry all you want in these sweet little emotional stud earrings.