# Pain threshold **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [May 16, 2013, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-threshold/658471 "2013-05-16T00:19:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![donnie\_darko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@donnie\_darko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/donnie_darko)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2013, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-threshold/658471/1 "2013-05-16T00:19:27Z")
> **[Studies Suggest Men Handle Pain Better](https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=97662&page=1)** Apparently there is no debate now that men tolerate pain better than women, empirically speaking. Women in general simply suffer more physically speaking and are more prone to chronic pain, though both sexes suffer things like cancer equally and women’s bodies create pain relief when they are giving birth. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2013, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-threshold/658471/2 "2013-05-16T00:27:45Z")
Interesting - I’d always heard that women had a _higher_ pain tolerance. As for women suffering more, in my understanding that’s because women have on average smaller bodies but the same number of nerves. So they in turn on average have a greater nerve _density_, which means that for a given touch or pain stimulus they get greater intensity and detail than an average man would. ---
**Author:** ![donnie\_darko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@donnie\_darko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/donnie_darko)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2013, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-threshold/658471/3 "2013-05-16T00:32:39Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > Interesting - I’d always heard that women had a _higher_ pain tolerance. > > As for women suffering more, in my understanding that’s because women have on average smaller bodies but the same number of nerves. So they in turn on average have a greater nerve _density_, which means that for a given touch or pain stimulus they get greater intensity and detail than an average man would. Which is also why their orgasms are more intense … ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2013, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-threshold/658471/4 "2013-05-16T03:03:35Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > . . . women have on average smaller bodies but the same number of nerves. So they in turn on average have a greater nerve _density_, which means that for a given touch or pain stimulus they get greater intensity and detail than an average man would. So, like, if a guy should happen to have a really small willy… ---
**Author:** ![colander](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e8c25b/32.png) [@colander](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/colander)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2013, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-threshold/658471/5 "2013-05-16T03:39:07Z")
Given that men are socialized towards stoicism all their lives, I’d think it would be rather more surprising if they _didn’t_ complain less than women do given equal suffering. What’s the debate? ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2013, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-threshold/658471/6 "2013-05-16T04:03:48Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > So, like, if a guy should happen to have a really small willy… I’m not sure that would make much of a difference, given how the sensitivity of the penis is concentrated near the end and not distributed evenly. > [@colander](#): > > Given that men are socialized towards stoicism all their lives, I’d think it would be rather more surprising if they _didn’t_ complain less than women do given equal suffering. What’s the debate? The scientists in the article claim that to have shown that isn’t the reason. ---
**Author:** ![colander](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e8c25b/32.png) [@colander](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/colander)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2013, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-threshold/658471/7 "2013-05-16T04:15:35Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > The scientists in the article claim that to have shown that isn’t the reason. The scientists quoted in the article say no such thing. And they’re right not to. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2013, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pain-threshold/658471/8 "2013-05-16T04:35:57Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > So, like, if a guy should happen to have a really small willy… . . . then a girl should not balk at anal.