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Physical pain is governed by the rules of science, rules external to my control. Emotional pain is only governed by by mind, and since I have far more control over my mind than I do over the rules of science, I can deal with emotional pain better. Therefore, physical pain is worse since I am less equipped to deal with it.
An abrasive corollary: If you think emotional pain is worse then you are dumb and weak.
:evil:
I think I'll go cry in the corner now.Quote:
Originally Posted by -N-
But seriously, it depends on your personal pain thresholds and personality. At least physical pain is useful for defense and learning. From a pragmatic standpoint, emotional pain isn't useful for much other than cultivating an affected self-image.
Emotional pain.
The reason I believe it to be emotional pain to be worse is that the body naturally will shut off the pain, believe me when exposed to stupendous amounts of physical pain the body somehow manages to mute it. I had my jaw shattered and it hurt, hurt like hell but even before the doctor at the hospital injected the morphine in to my system to help ease it I found my body slowly but surely shutting the pain down, the nerves are like alarm claxons and the pain merely the ringing after so long you know they're going but you can still shut off the loud sounds that go with it.
Emotional pain however you have to work through on your own, all this counselling stuff is really just getting you to the place where you are capable and willing to face the problem but in the end it's always going to be you and you alone. Whilst some people see failure to deal with emotional pain as weak I accept from the point of view that I could generally always deal with my emotions well everyone can and probably will be put in the situation where they cannot cope with emotional pain in this lifetime and untill you are in that situation you will never truly understand just how much emotional pain truly hurts.
[QUOTE=Rosenti;2043322]Emotional by far. Physical pain can be dulled to a bearable level, even when untreatable and chronic. Trying to cure your emotional pain by dulling out your emotions is a lot worse than the malady... Makes you a living zombie.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ice Angel;2043321 emotional last longer! [/quote
Most emotional pains do "heal" but leave a sore spot inside you. You're healed, you moved on but you can still remember the acute pain and shudder at the memories. Physical pain is easily forgotten.
Well, the "consolation prize" is that you learn to avoid that kind of pain next time, by learning about yourself and how you and others interact. So in theory the failed love, friendship, etc.. will teach you to find and keep your true love and true friends. I have found that to be accurate in the past, in my case, so I grin and bear the next wave of pain in the hope it will help someday.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dr Aum
Reminds me of a Beatles song
I look at the world and I notice it's turning
While my guitar gently weeps
With every mistake we must surely be learning
Still my guitar gently weeps
I don't think this thread is about the actual damage done, but the pain you feel because of it.Quote:
Originally Posted by KhaoticYou're comparing apples with oranges. Try being shot in the head and having lifetime injuries where you're mentally retarded for the rest of your life.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ice Angel
For me, I'm not sure. I don't feel emotional pain very often. I guess it is because I don't really let things affect me, and if I let them, I get over them after not too long. I also think I'm pretty good at ignoring physical pain. I acknowledge that something is wrong, and avoid straining those parts of me, but I don't let the actual pain bother me a lot.
I guess I'll go with emotional, because of the few times I actually had those, I felt worse than the pain any physical damage has made me feel.
I think emotional pain is the worst. When I was little, a lot of people didn't like me and I didn't know why. It doesn't bother me as much now, but it does little bit. Emotional pain makes you rethink the event.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bunny
emotional. some never recover from it.
That depends on how you define "recover" I guess. I grant you that some emotional scars are unforgettable and some still hurt years later. Like the death of a loved one, be it mom, dad, kid or partner. You never forget but you remember it less often and with less pain.Quote:
Originally Posted by Yami_Yuffie
Having been through a lot, I think I did recover. Never forgot some of it, but did move on with my life. I'd like to believe I'm not unique and that people DO recover even if they never forget. :)
You are a) lucky you never had a serious emotional pain, b) a sissy if you think a stubbed toe - or whatever physical pain - hurts more than the pain of losing someone you love or other emotional maladies.Quote:
Originally Posted by -N-
I gave birth to 3 kids. I know physical pain. I hardly remembered any of them after the week they happened. The same is not true for heartbreak or losing someone close.
XD I laughed out loud.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dr Aum
Emotional. It can really hurt.
Depends. The potential for emotional pain is arguably larger because it seems more difficult to max out - there comes a point where physical pain doesn't increase in proportion to the damage inflicted. You can be in pain to the point of passing out - your brain basically gives up on the whole pain idea. Doesn't want to deal with it. It's a lot more difficult to get someone to pass out from emotional pain. Rather, it causes deep psychological scarring, much of the time.
Both linger in different ways, too. You can have a chronic physical ailment that causes physical pain that can be difficult to bear, but the same can be said for emotional pain.
I prefer emotional pain, because I'm largely fairly good at dealing with it. If it's too big for me, though, I don't have much of an outlet to siphon it off.
Emotional. But then again, i have never been set on fire or had my legs broken or anything like that. I think if it were to be pain that great, i (and probably most others) would choose emotional pain. Not to mention i dont have a strong tolerance for pain.
That's B.S. Everyone can feel it when they're getting punched in the stomach by someone.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bunny
Feeling something striking you does not always equate to physical pain. A person with rock hard abs getting punched in the stomach will still feel it, but chances are, they will not be in any sort of pain. On the other hand, plenty of people have tried their bodies and their minds to simply ignore harsh physical pain without having any sort of significant muscle mass.
The majority of 'pain' a person feels when, say, a limb gets cut off, is mostly due to the shock of seeing their limb missing. Shock is not pain; it is a state of mind. If you get rid of that, if you can block that out, the pain is not there. Yes, I am saying that with enough mental discipline, a person can resist the pain of getting an arm or a leg cut off.
Naturally, a person can also resist emotional pain. They have names for this: Sociopathy, psychopathy, you name it. That is not discipline, however, that is due to a chemical imbalance. They are entirely different from each other.
I agree.Quote:
Originally Posted by Khaotic
Exactly, that's what I meant.
It depends a lot on what kind of "Pains" we are talking about.
And it's very hard to establish a comparison here.
Extreme Physical pain can lead to emotional pain
And extreme Emotional Pain can lead to physical death (suicide).
But still, in emotional pain you have the possibility of a cure when with physical issues, you aren't always that lucky.
Most of people are so lucky to be healthy that they forget what is to be the opposite and how life turns different when it happens.