It Hurts Me, Too

It Hurts Me, Too
Ashley Lyons 5/9/03

What exactly is pain? A scientific definition would have it that pain is a "sensation of discomfort that may lead to distress and feelings of urgency resulting from stimulation of specialized nerve endings" (FASS, 20). Few people, though, exclaim, "Oh, my specialized nerve endings!" upon stubbing their toes. More often, people vocalize how and what they are feeling when they are in "pain" from stubbing their toes. For all pain, although sharing the commonality of being caused by "stimulation of special nerve endings," manifests itself in different ways. "Pain is a perception, not a physical entity" (Carstens, vii). Nobody can be sure that they are feeling precisely the pain of anybody else. Therefore, it is impossible to define one single sensation that every person interprets as "pain." Each person must determine for himself/herself which of his/her personal experiences and feelings constitute pain. But because there are standard words used to ...