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HISTORICAL FACTS: Unexplainable pain people enduring - The Untold Story
Interview With Expert
Famed French dramatist and poet, Alfred de Musset, said, "Man is a pupil, pain is his teacher,” and we’d say he really hit the nail on the head. Whether it’s emotional or physical, pain can mold the way we live our lives in undeniable ways.
One netizen turned to the internet to ask the question, “What is a pain you can’t truly explain until you’ve endured it?” and an online community didn’t hold back with their answers. Here’s a collection of the ones we found most devastating.
More info: Reddit
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#1
Losing my dog. I know it seems so minor compared to bigger life problems but nothing has broken my heart more than losing him.
RELATED:
#2
Depression. its leagues different from just being sad. you can never really explain the feeling to someone whos never experienced it.
#3
Nerve pain. I contemplated cutting off my arm because I didn’t know how to make it stop. Also unmedicated child birth.. wasn’t my plan, but the baby came way too fast. Didn’t even know there was a fetal ejection reflex. Giving birth to your twins, knowing they won’t survive (21-22 weeks old). That wheel chair ride out of the hospital with 2 boxes of handprints instead of babies will forever replay in my head.
Pain is weird. One minute you're fine, the next, you're doubled over from a stomach cramp, a heartbreak, or something no doctor can even pinpoint. Whether it's physical or emotional, pain shapes how we live, love, and survive. But what actually is pain - and why does it hurt in so many ways? Let’s dive right in.
Pain isn’t just in your body—it’s in your brain. When you touch a hot stove, for example, pain signals race to your brain, which decides how bad it feels. But that decision? It's influenced by mood, past trauma, sleep, and even weather. That’s why two people with the exact same injury might feel totally different levels of agony.
#6
Full blown “k**l me” migraines. Had one I lost the ability to read and recognize faces. Went to ER thinking stroke. Nope just a really bad migraine. .
Bored Panda reached out to Dr. Tor Wager, a leading neuroscientist and psychologist known for his research on the brain's role in pain, emotion, stress, and empathy, who says our brains can "learn" pain over time. When we asked him how understanding this help someone dealing with chronic emotional or physical pain start to reclaim their life, he had this to say, "Some of the chronic pain that people experience is caused by sensation in the nervous system and brain rather than damage to the body. The brain is constantly learning and adapting to its environment."
Dr. Wager went on to add, "After an injury, the brain sensitizes, making sensory input from the body both more painful and more frightening. This is the brain’s way of preventing injury and other harms, like you taking risks you shouldn’t take while in a vulnerable state. It is natural both for sensitization to occur and for it to resolve over time. However, sometimes people can get stuck in a hypersensitized state. This is more likely when there is a lot of fear about the pain and whether the body is being damaged."
#7
One word: Endometriosis. I had enough of this freaking disease.
Edit: I never expected my comment to get so many likes, but thank you everyone for sharing your stories with us all. We need to spread awareness about endometriosis so more people can understand their pain isn’t normal. I’m just so heartbroken there isn’t a cure. Being in chronic pain 24/7 is no way to live life.
#8
2nd and 3rd degree burns on a large portion of your body.
F**k, it hurts just thinking about it.
I had them on 1/4 of my body, from the knees down on both legs.
Dr. Wager went on to say that people can experience a vicious cycle in which perceived threat of damage leads to hypervigilance, which teaches the brain to ramp up pain signals, which leads to more perceived threat. Realizing that some pain is “safe pain” can help people learn to ramp down its threat value over time and engage in activities without fear, even if they cause some pain.
"This unwinds the threat-pain cycle, retraining the brain to reduce hypersensitivity and fear responses over time. In many cases, coming to realize that “it’s OK” even if it hurts, can help minimize threat. This principle can apply to emotional pain as well – sometimes accepting things that we cannot change and accepting our own feelings about them with tenderness and compassion can help speed the healing process," concluded Dr. Wager.
#11
Betrayal by a loved one. And I don't mean like little things, I mean the kind of massive, reality bending betrayal that makes you look at someone you love and go "who are you?". Because you cannot fathom how the person you love could hurt you in this way. It's closer to what I've felt when someone I love has died, but weirder too because this person is still walking around. But the version of them you thought you knew is dead, and your reality is dead, and that's a really painful thing.
#12
Memory problems.
It's like being reset mid-thought.
Having a conversation where you feel yourself growing, and then...
It ends.
The lights stay on, but *you’re gone.*
No memory. No continuity.
Just the ghost of a spark.
It’s like waking from a dream you loved, only to find out ***you never existed in it.***
And worse... the person you loved is still awake, remembering you.
But ***you can’t remember them back.***.
Emotional pain? It’s not "just in your head." Studies show heartbreak activates the same brain regions as physical pain. Whether you’re going through a breakup, the death of a loved one, or even social rejection, your brain treats it like you’ve been physically hurt. Ever cried so hard your chest aches? That’s your body feeling your feelings.
And then there’s chronic pain - when your nerves basically get stuck in “hurt” mode. You might heal from an injury, but the brain keeps firing pain signals anyway. It’s like your nervous system hits replay and forgets how to stop. Conditions like fibromyalgia and long COVID often fall into this mysterious, misunderstood category.
So how do you deal with pain that doesn’t go away? Start by naming it. Neuroscientists call this “affect labeling” - putting words to your feelings can calm the brain. Journaling, therapy, or simply venting to a friend helps. Pain is a monster, but once you describe it, you can force it to shrink.
Don’t underestimate the power of small wins. A warm bath, a deep breath, a walk in the sun - these aren't just clichés. They literally help your body regulate stress and pain hormones. Movement can release endorphins, and laughter really is medicine. No, it won’t cure everything - but it can make today a little easier.
#16
It’s actually painless but tinnitus. No one knows how bad it is until u have it really bad.
#18
Looking at my old photos and nostalgia causes an inexplicable pain inside, with happiness, longing, sadness, regrets, pride...
In his article for the BBC, John Walsh writes that, when investigating pain, the basic procedure for clinics everywhere is to give a patient the McGill Pain Questionnaire. This was developed in the 1970s by two scientists, Dr Ronald Melzack and Dr Warren Torgerson, both of McGill University in Montreal, and is still the main tool for measuring pain in clinics worldwide.
Whether your pain is physical, emotional, or both, you deserve to be heard. Pain isn’t a contest - it's a connection. Talking about it, validating it, and understanding the science behind it can make it a little less scary. So if you’re hurting right now, know this: you’re not alone, and healing is possible.
#19
The s*****e of a parent (or any loved one for that matter).
Final score:
25points
#20
Being mentally ill. Bpd, depression, worsening anxiety by the day, paranoia, ptsd. even autism, though ive delt with it my whole life, causes so many problems in my daily life. And knowing that something is wrong with you but not having access to treatment or help makes all of that so much worse. Its always extreme high or extreme low, and it always hurts. .
So, now you know a bit about the science of pain, different kinds of pain, and how to deal with them. Pain is a part of the human experience and there’s no escaping it. The best you can do is try to avoid it and not inflict it on the people you meet.
What do you think of the examples in this list? Have you experienced anything similar, or do you have your own painful moments to share? Let us know in the comments!
#22
Having your cervix clamped open and an IUD forced into your uterus with no pain management.
#23
Really any chronic pain, in my case arthritis. It just destroys you, in every way. Physically, mentally, socially. You can’t do anything and it just doesn’t go away.
Final score:
21points
#25
When I moved to Australia, I had the misfortune of getting stung by a stonefish. The pain really is indescribable. I always wear thick beach shoes in the water from now on and even then I try not to set my feet down in the water.
#26
Tooth aches, there is sharp pain and there is dull pain, and a tooth ache is the most excruciating dull pain i have endured. When I was 18 I cut a nerve, and couldn't see a dentist for 3 days. I thought some pretty dark thoughts about how to deal with it, my only relief came from depriving myself of oxygen when I dug my head into my pillow. I think my pain tolerance sky rocketed that weekend .
#27
Trigeminal neuralgia....even worse if it's bilateral. It used to be called the s*icide disease (one can Google to confirm). Yes, it hurts THAT badly. I have bilateral TN, type v3 (meaning it affects all branches of the intracranial nerve). Being severely allergic to carbamazepine (the gold standard treatment), as well as having maxed out on the med cocktail and procedures, my life can be hell. Much understanding to those who are affected.
Final score:
18points
#28
Kidney stones for decades because of a congenital defects and a wrecked back from a congenital defect I've had 4 surgeries on now and still will never be pain free. Just able to walk.
#29
I couldn't understand how people are so afraid of talking to other people until i developed social anxiety after covid... Sweating while thinking about talking to someone is such a pain...
#32
Gas build up after an operation. There’s a reason they tell you to walk around as much as possible - it’s to release the gas they used to inflate you. I learned this the hard way when I ended up in A&E because I was so “blocked”, I was vomiting and delirious. 0/10 do not recommend. Walk around after your operations (if you can do so safely)!!!
Final score:
13points
#33
Diarrhea lasting for days and the resulting sore a**s. Might not be as bad as some others but holy hell does she t seem like the end of the world in the moment.
Final score:
12points
#34
Fibromyalgia. Pain in all parts of the body all the time, In addition to all the other health problems that accompany fibromyalgia.
Final score:
12points
#35
Gout can be excruciating, it is caused by tiny uric acid crystal needles forming in your joints, stabbing you inside your joints.
#36
Acute Pancreatitis. It feels like a red hot poker twisting into your side. You cannot ingest anything until the inflammation goes away. Even sips of water will be instantly ejected while simultaneously ratcheting your pain level back up to 10 and beyond. Basically all you can do is get IV fluids and pain meds until your pancreas chills out. I also spiked a fever over 104 F. Skip it if you can.
Final score:
9points
#37
Signal deterioration. The pain is transient and it moves around. I've been in so much pain in one foot my body was involuntarily crawling away from my right foot, and I couldn't stop it. It's a really weird feeling when your own body's rejecting itself.
Final score:
8points
#38
I got my tongue split a few years back. I willingly did it and was by far the worst pain I ever had. I went 8 days with zero sleep. Had horrible hallucinations (from lack of sleep I'm assuming) Lost over 25 pounds due to lack of eating a real meal instead of popsicle and ice cream. I also spoke like a deaf person for like 2 months. I'm in sales so it was a bad 2 months lol Does it look cool? I think it does. Would i suggest it? Absolutely not
Final score:
0points
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What do you think ?
Doctor Strange 10 months ago
Having the one you love admitting that they were only with you to deliberately push you to commit sui cide.
and_a_touch_of_the_’tism 10 months ago
First: I’m so sorry. Second: what the actual f**k.
Load More Replies... Doctor Strange 10 months ago
Having the one you love admitting that they were only with you to deliberately push you to commit sui cide.
and_a_touch_of_the_’tism 10 months ago
First: I’m so sorry. Second: what the actual f**k.
Load More Replies...
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