Writing about personal and family struggles was an emotional process. The author faced moments of tears and reflection, channeling her feelings into poetry that offers comfort and connection to others who have experienced similar challenges. Life's struggles; to include, financial, and all those we know and speak up on a daily basis is infact a part of this author and likely, many others as well. As you perform searches, you'd have to prepare yourself to expect those poems and other readings, as well, to result in emotional challenges; often authors do become overcome. Their readers can sense it as well. At any given conversation with someone who writes, speaks, or reads text that is subject to effect you, the obvious is clear. Overcoming emotions can be a challenge.
Certainly writing about personal and family struggles would be subject to have an effect on an author's ability to do the actual writing alone. When it comes to 'breaking down", showing emotions such as tears and such, that would be the norm; espcially if its a time when the reader is reading it (the text) out-loud. To have others in their presence just guarantees more emotion by the reader. Obviously, those being read-to will have those same feelings. You could say. all who is within the sound of the reader is subject to have emotions that would be a challenge to "hold back."