Catharsis - a healing

Have you ever felt so much pain that it just opens your floodgates of emotion? I have ... again! What a wonderful liberating feeling... but is it the answer? is it how emotions should be handled? What are the health issues of having stress, emotions and everything else tucked deep inside to a point that a cathartic evening (yes, canes, whips, floggers, leather straps) is the only thing that will set everything free? So many questions... so few answers