PAIN

SHORT STORY

The Mad Racer (Emotions: Vengeance/Pain)

Neil is a retired amateur race car driver. He spends most his time pondering how his life could have been had it not been for a fatal accident caused by his arch rival, Antonio. On that day he experienced the beginning of a lifetime with severe back pain. Retired and angry, Neil vowed vengeance for Antonio. As a youth he learned that by stuffing a potato in the exhaust pipe he could
cause a car to stop running, but only for a few minutes until the exhaust pressure releases. He is only recently retired and still has clearance to the race track. He uses this to arrive earlier than the drivers.

Antonio is no where in sight. He takes the potato from his pocket, shoves it snugly into the pipe, and exits the building. Later this day his phone rings. As Neil is finishing up his evening with dinner his phone rings abruptly. He answers and to his
shock, it is his former boss. He says he is calling to tell Neil that Antonio died in a car pile-up in the first lap of a race after his car suddenly died. Neil is devastated, he never knew his act of revenge would be so drastic. He now lives retired and even more
depressed. He never thought his best friend would retaliate by dying.

PAIN
Pain is an unpleasant sensation either physically or emotionally. It is a signal to the mind or body to protect and heal the self. Under the influence of pain, optimal functioning of the
human body is compromised. Things which cause insensitivity to pain are happiness, love, war, severe injury and outside encouragement. Short lasting pain is called acute (less than a month) long lasting pain is called chronic (1/2 year or more) It is
very important that you feel and recognize pain as your body is
telling you it is injured physically or emotionally. Insensitivity to pain causes a person to be in critical risk of unfelt damage and further damage by not correcting the injury.

Phantom pain is feeling pain in an area of the body that doesn’t exist. Amputees frequently experience this type of pain, and it’s source is neuropathic (damage or disease in the nervous system) Psychogenic pain is when someone is hurting mentally/
emotionally. There is often no source for psychogenic pain and therapists are more qualified than medical doctors in this case.

Psychogenic pain’s source can be found by admitting the objective truth of a situation and taking responsibility to improve it or else deal with anxiety, depression, neuroticism.

CURE: There are serious situations where the treatment of pain should be carried out by a licensed physician. These are tips for self treatment, they include the following: Knowing the exact time of the pain, knowing how severe/strong it is. Then cure yourself or get help from a friend, family member, loved one or
other type of social support.

PAIN (Quotes)
“The aim of the wise is not to secure pleasure, but to avoid pain.” – Aristotle

“Fear is pain arising from the anticipation of evil.” – Aristotle

“Find a place inside where there’s joy, and the joy will burn out the pain.” – Joseph Campbell

“It is easier to find men who will volunteer to die than to find those who are willing to endure pain with patience.” – Julius Caesar

“Nature shows that with the growth of intelligence comes increased capacity for pain, and it is only with the highest degree off intelligence that suffering reaches its supreme point.” – Arthur
Schopenhauer

“The two enemies of human happiness are pain and boredom.” – Arthur Schopenhauer

“We cannot be more sensitive to pleasure without being more sensitive to pain.” – Alan Watts

“I imagine one of the reasons people cling to their hates so stubbornly is because they sense once the hate is gone they will be forced to deal with the pain.” – James A. Baldwin

“For these cultures, getting rid of the pain without addressing the deeper cause would be like shutting off a fire alarm while the fire’s still going.” – David Foster Wallace