system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: why does it feel like there is a lump in your throat when you are in the verge of tears?
gpt
When you are sad, scared, or stressed out, your body can enter into a "fight or flight" response. Your body is preparing either to throw some punches or run for the hills, and this causes your muscles to tense up. Since your muscles need lots of oxygen to fire, your brain will tell the muscles near your vocal chords to open up and stay open. As you cry, you likely need to swallow more as your nose starts to run. Each time you swallow hard, you are fighting the muscles keeping your throat open and this tension may build into the feeling that there is a "lump" in your throat.