Tell us the gory details. I’m mostly interested in closed-fist contact, but open-slap stories are welcome too.
And I’ve never experienced either.
mmm
15 years of martial arts, so, yeah. Can’t recommend it. I’ve been kicked in the face, too, but I can’t honestly recommend that, either.
Yes and yes. He regretted starting it.
Yes. Knocked clean out, for something my buddy did. Alcohol may have been involved.
Yes, to both questions. I got into a lot of fights in my youth and, well, you can’t win them all. Or, at least, I couldn’t.
My father beat the crap outta me, when I was about 6-7. But I have never hit anyone.
Yes
but I don’t remember doing it.
When he hit the ground I thought it was because he was drunk.
Yes to both. It isn’t as fun as it looks in the movies.
Another martial artist here, so yes, I’ve been punched in the face. Not as many times as you might think–it’s unpleasant, and I quickly learned to mostly keep people from doing it. Getting punched with sparring gear on is not the same as a bareknuckle punch, though; it’s usually less painful than disorienting–your view is blocked just as you get whacked in the face with something heavy and sort of semi-squishy. It disrupts your breathing for a moment and puts you off-balance. I’ve also been kicked in the face in sparring; as Ethilrist said, that’s also contraindicated. (One of those kicks was the only time I’ve really been injured while engaging in martial arts, and it was an accident on my opponent’s part.) I’ve been in a few real fights, but never been punched in the face in one.
Likewise, I’ve punched people in the face in sparring plenty of times, but never in a real fight. I generally consider the face a poor target for punching barehanded. It’s bony, toothy, and people are usually better at guarding it than other parts of their bodies. The (very) few real fights I’ve been in, I either went quickly to grappling or used a stick for striking.
For further reference, getting whacked in the head with a stick also isn’t much fun. Still better than a bullet, though. A stick is sort of like a bee sting plus being suddenly drunk, only without the fun. A bullet is more like a white-hot hammer. So that’s two more things you don’t need to try.
Yeah my dad slapped me in face all the time b/c I was hard of hearing and didn’t hear him calling me. He threw things at my head all the time too . You’re not missing a damn thing ! A b/f once slapped me across my face b/c the
fool ran into my ex b/f no where near my apartment and he got upset .
I returned the favor and slapped my b/f across his face two times and told him to never put a hand on me again! And he never hit me again.
Been punched in the mouth once by a drunk cab driver. I was trying to flag him down as he drove into the parking lot of a liquor store that turned out to be closed. He nearly ran over me as he pulled out of the lot and drove over to the convenience store across the street. After I crossed the street to ask him “What the hell?” he hauled off and punched me.
And I couldn’t get the absolutely useless Kansas City Missouri Police department to even breathalyze the asshole, let alone let me press charges for assault! Apparently keeping a functional alcoholic behind the wheel of a cab was more important than my bloody mouth.
My friend and I were both n00bs in martial arts (at different schools) and one day we decided to go out in the backyard and spar. We didn’t have two sets of gear, just one. I believe I had the gloves and helmet.
Anyway he took a swing and connected to my chin and I “lost a second” and found myself on the ground. I had a MASSIVE bruise on my chin, like the size of a silver dollar, and deep purple. I don’t remember it hurting as bad as it looked. It was surprising that it didn’t hurt too bad considering I have a bad jaw.
This was during the week I had to go to a dinner and two weddings that weekend. I managed to pull off the cover-up pretty well (green combats purple!)
Getting hit very unexpectedly that one time made me instantly less afraid of being hit during sparring after that. I remember several times being hit in the head (you’re not allowed to hit in the fact) and not flinching.
Both. Mostly involved in martial arts and using protective equipment on my or my opponents hands, but I’ve been punched in the face/head in several bar fights in my time as well. Generally, it’s a really bad place to punch someone without any protection on your hands, as you are much more likely to injure or break bones in your hands than you are to win the fight. In one bar fight I ducked my head (more from a drunken stumble than any ninja like abilities I had going for me at the time) and the guy hit me in the forehead. Now, it really hurt and I was definitely seeing stars. But the guy, he broke a bunch of bones in his hand, which swelled up like a melon and left him screaming and squealing like a little girl.
Sort of, but not really. I’ve “play boxed” with friends where the goal really isn’t to hit the other person, but sometimes one person gets (un)lucky and gets through a block and also puts a bit too much weight into the punch.
I’ve never gotten/given a real shiner or concussion or anything from it, but a pretty solid smack in the fact that goes beyond a slap.
Maybe 10 or 12
Dad bought 2 sets of the old heavy boxing gloves for Xmas
Took me & little brother to the basement for a learning lesson
Me & brothers pat each other for a while
Dad gave some pointers
We were ready for the Golden Gloves in about a week
Dad took us down again and he put one glove on his right hand
I was first & got 2 gloves
Dad all but knocked my head off
I was not ready for the Golden Gloves it seemed
I did not like get hit harder than my little brother did it
Dad, “Now you feel why I say there is no such thing as a fair fight that is worth having. If it isn’t worth killing from behind for, it is not worth fighting for.”
I have not had 100% success with this but I tend to wait until the opponent thinks I won’t fight and turns to walk away. Then I win the fight without getting hit in the face.
In my later years I find it strange that people bring words, knives, sticks & stones, all kind of things to our gun fights.
YMMV 
You’ve described me very well.
The worst beating I’ve ever experienced was a direct result of my punching another guy in the jaw. It didn’t even phase him; he beat the living hell out of me.
I am sorry that happened to you. I am glad to see you post. We didn’t agree on too much else, but you have good taste in .357’s. I really hope this finds you well and happy.
I’ve been hit in the face twice. Both times hurt and one of those times made my nose bleed. Both were before the age of 18, though. In fact, one was when I was about ten (the bloody nose one).
I say hit and not punch because it wasn’t one of those movie-like punches or a punch you think of when you hear the phrase “punched in the face”. It was with a closed fist both times, yeah, but it wasn’t nearly as hard as a real punch usually looks like. Like I said, though, they both did hurt, although not badly. Neither were hard enough to send me to the ground or even reel me back.
I’ve never punched anyone, myself.
Only once since I was close to adult size. We boxed in gym, and two of us average guys entertained everyone with a slugfest. People thought we were actually mad at each other, but we laughed and shook hands after it was over.
A whole bunch of times. I was kind of an asshole when I was young and got in a fair number of fights.
As an adult?
Everything from full headgear and gloves while sparring to getting blindsided with a pair of brass knuckles. I did far more being hit than I did hitting, as I was always better at grappling than striking. I worked from '99-14 as a bouncer/doorman and was involved in a lot of fights. It never looked good in the aftermath if I, or any other bouncer had hauled off and punched someone in the face, so I just didn’t. A few split lips, bloody noses and lots of scrapes and bruises along the way but nothing serious until around '12 when I had to confront a drunk in the very small vestibule of the bar I was working at. It was like fighting in a phone booth and he got off a lucky punch that skidded off my cheek and connected with the side of my nose. Shattered one of my nasal bones. I couldn’t take the time or spend the money to get it properly repaired, so my nose is a little crooked, a bit bumpy and constantly stuffy on the left side.
It didn’t end well for him either. After I felt my nose break and my eyes started watering I just “sumo-ed” him out the door, pulled my Asp and started whacking him until he ran away.
edited to add
I also have a boxer’s fracture of my right pinkie that I got sometime around 2001. It was a big confusing 8 on 6 brawl early in my career. I threw a punch in self-defense and anger and nailed a guy right above his ear. Laid him out but the hand started swelling up after.