# How old were you the last time that physical pain made you cry? And Why? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 29, 2011, 10:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-old-were-you-the-last-time-that-physical-pain-made-you-cry-and-why/597996 "2011-09-29T10:48:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Jaledin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Jaledin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jaledin)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2011, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-old-were-you-the-last-time-that-physical-pain-made-you-cry-and-why/597996/61 "2011-10-03T01:09:12Z")
Just five weeks ago. I was housesitting and my mother happened to come back early. Stubbed my “ring” toe against a vacuum cleaner or some other crap in the hallway, and nearly bit my tongue off trying to keep from making too much noise. At 1:30 am I drank two bottles of wine just to kill the pain (don’t knock it – it’s actually good for controlling pain, sort of) and hit the sack. 5 or 6 weeks later, the toe is still black. At least I didn’t lose it, but maybe I should have. ---
**Author:** ![carlotta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/898d66/32.png) [@carlotta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carlotta)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2011, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-old-were-you-the-last-time-that-physical-pain-made-you-cry-and-why/597996/62 "2011-10-03T02:17:55Z")
> [@melan8](#): > > > [@carlotta](#): > > > > Done by a doctor with a German accent no less! > > Interesting remark! Do you mean that there is a connection between the harshness of the test and his (or her) German origin? 🙂 No, but a lifetime of movies/TV shows with scenes of Nazi torturers (often with electrical devices) has left me with a permanent association of German accent and intentional pain infliction, so the doctor’s accent seemed particularly apropos. I can’t know if the pain was _worse_ with a German accented doctor. It’s not like I’m willing to try it again with an Irish doctor. ---
**Author:** ![Cub\_Mistress](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ea666f/32.png) [@Cub\_Mistress](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cub_Mistress)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2011, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-old-were-you-the-last-time-that-physical-pain-made-you-cry-and-why/597996/63 "2011-10-03T03:15:42Z")
> [@Jaledin](#): > > Just five weeks ago. I was housesitting and my mother happened to come back early. Stubbed my “ring” toe against a vacuum cleaner or some other crap in the hallway, and nearly bit my tongue off trying to keep from making too much noise. At 1:30 am I drank two bottles of wine just to kill the pain (don’t knock it – it’s actually good for controlling pain, sort of) and hit the sack. > > 5 or 6 weeks later, the toe is still black. At least I didn’t lose it, but maybe I should have. You should probably see a doctor. mine was about 8 years ago, with unrelenting pain from a pinched nerve in my neck that affected my head (constant headache) and my right arm ( unrelenting pain of 8/10.) I was out of state, so I consulted a doc-in-the-box. I held together well until the med assistant asked about pain and I broke down and cried. I think that was a point in my favor when I saw the doctor, who fulfilled my requests for Flexaril and Lortabs without delay. ---
**Author:** ![Jaledin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Jaledin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jaledin)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2011, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-old-were-you-the-last-time-that-physical-pain-made-you-cry-and-why/597996/64 "2011-10-03T05:15:21Z")
> [@Cub\_Mistress](#): > > You should probably see a doctor. > > mine was about 8 years ago, with unrelenting pain from a pinched nerve in my neck that affected my head (constant headache) and my right arm ( unrelenting pain of 8/10.) I was out of state, so I consulted a doc-in-the-box. I held together well until the med assistant asked about pain and I broke down and cried. I think that was a point in my favor when I saw the doctor, who fulfilled my requests for Flexaril and Lortabs without delay. Thanks for that – as luck has it, I’m seeing my GP this week for a check-in with my mental anxiety social retardation or whatever, and I’ll be taking my shoe off for sure. It still looks nasty. I couldn’t afford any fancy antiseptic, so I used gelled alcohol (Purell-type stuff) and it still looks nasty after almost six weeks. Don’t hurt, though, and is looking better. It was always a bad toe. You guys will get this – nobody in my crew caught this one. “Ohhh, brack toe! Velly good!” ---
**Author:** ![ducati](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/cc9497/32.png) [@ducati](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ducati)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2011, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-old-were-you-the-last-time-that-physical-pain-made-you-cry-and-why/597996/65 "2011-10-03T18:33:47Z")
1. This year. Kidney stone. Again. Last time I got runned over by a car was at 40. Hurt veddy, veddy much. ---
**Author:** ![Marlitharn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/779978/32.png) [@Marlitharn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marlitharn)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2011, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-old-were-you-the-last-time-that-physical-pain-made-you-cry-and-why/597996/66 "2011-10-03T20:14:48Z")
Two years ago. Insane killer take-your-breath-away muscle spasms in my back. Every 5 minutes, more often if I tried to do anything radical like move or yawn. Spent 3 days in bed on Flexoril and Percoset, spent the next year and a half or so with low-grade lower back pain that occasionally flared into spasms again, but nowhere near as bad as that first go-round. It still aches if I’m on my feet for too long, or if I sit for too long, but at least it’s not 24/7 anymore. Stretching exercises help a lot. ---
**Author:** ![3\_20\_59\_or\_bust](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/3/47e85d/32.png) [@3\_20\_59\_or\_bust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/3_20_59_or_bust)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2011, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-old-were-you-the-last-time-that-physical-pain-made-you-cry-and-why/597996/67 "2011-10-03T23:32:34Z")
> [@hotflungwok](#): > > Monday, in the emergency room with a kidney stone. This is a sure thing. I haven’t had a bout with kidney stones in about five years…and that’s the last time I cried from pain. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-old-were-you-the-last-time-that-physical-pain-made-you-cry-and-why/597996/68 "2011-10-04T00:25:43Z")
Almost 2 years ago. Shoulder Surgery. I squeezed out a few trying to get in and out of a chair. ---
**Author:** ![C3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/c3/32/3108_2.png) [@C3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C3)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-old-were-you-the-last-time-that-physical-pain-made-you-cry-and-why/597996/69 "2011-10-04T03:25:40Z")
I had a pretty major tear when I had my youngest son, 5 1/2 years ago. I hadn’t had any pain medication for the birth, but they gave me an epidural for the stitches and it took them a few hours to get everything sewn up. Everything was fine for about a week, but my body does not react well to stitches and everything got irritated, then infected. Very, very painful, but still not tear-inducing. What did it for me was lying on the table in my GP’s office and having her pull about 35 of the most irritated stitches out with a pair of tweezers. I cried the whole time and she felt absolutely awful. That’s the only time I can remember reacting that way to pain as an adult. ETA: I was 33. ---
**Author:** ![Poysyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Poysyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poysyn)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-old-were-you-the-last-time-that-physical-pain-made-you-cry-and-why/597996/70 "2011-10-04T21:17:50Z")
One of two, both involving migraines: [ul] [li]every so often, I get a “super migraine” that no meds will touch. A few weeks ago, I had one of those. Leaning against the wall of the ER, holding a vomit basin, tears streaming down my face. It’s the unrelenting pain, I could handle childbirth sine I knew there was an end, with migraines you don’t know…[/li][li]second one, I had food poisoning and was vomiting violently when I heard something “pop” at the base of my skull and I could not straighten my neck. It immediatly tipped off a horrible headache that flooded from the back of my head. I thought I was dying. It took me four days and four trips to an RMT before i could turn my head. I did go to the doctor, BTW, just to rule out something more serious…[/li][/ul] The first, I cried in the ER, away from my daughter, who worries. The second? On the guest room carpet… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-old-were-you-the-last-time-that-physical-pain-made-you-cry-and-why/597996.md?page=3)