Every single year, without fail, I wake up crying on my birthday. I am not special in this regard. Birthday crying is widely reported, despite what anyone says about this day feeling like any other. It's linked to all the reasons you may think: reflection on aging, social pressure to have the Instagram-worthy "perfect day", emotional overwhelm, and perhaps oddly, loneliness. My birthday always feel like the loneliest day in the calendar year, even if I'm surrounded by people