What do you mean by it feeling more "real" exactly? That's a strong thing to say compared to therapy. Did that harsh feeling actually teach you something specific?
Used to think medicine was the only fix for my brain. Then I had a bad reaction to a refill and was off them for two weeks. Crying over a burnt pizza wasn't really about the pizza, it was old grief finally coming up, and I could actually see the chain of thought for once. That clarity, as awful as it felt, did more for me than just talking about being sad ever did.