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Do you feel the pain of others ?

chinu

chinu
Do you feel the pain of others ? if yes, than why and how, if not, than why not.
Kindly Note: Including all living beings such as animals and birds.

_/\_
Chinu
 

horizon_mj1

Well-Known Member
Do you feel the pain of others ? if yes, than why and how, if not, than why not.
Kindly Note: Including all living beings such as animals and birds.

_/\_
Chinu
Interesting question and not so easily answered for me. Yes at times I feel the pain of others usually when I see the pain is not warranted, usually on an emotional basis. However if it is a pain caused by the actions of the one feeling the pain, not always, this is where it becomes a situational basis for me.
 

Gjallarhorn

N'yog-Sothep
I feel pain for others sometimes. Why? I don't know. I assume it serves an evolutionary purpose such as maintaining the health of the herd or something. How? Empathy.

I feel empathy for mammals, less so birds, even less so reptiles, amphibians, fish, and insects. Especially insects. It takes a few specific events for me to feel empathy for them.
 

Madhuri

RF Goddess
Staff member
Premium Member
I have a lot of empathy- maybe too much so that it becomes a negative quality. I get affected by seeing an insect hurt and I can't watch an animal hurt or killed without experiencing some fairly intense emotional pain.
I do not know the how or why.
 

Thief

Rogue Theologian
Do you feel the pain of others ? if yes, than why and how, if not, than why not.
Kindly Note: Including all living beings such as animals and birds.

_/\_
Chinu

Yes....but I have grown shy of contact.

When my wife had cancer, I took on a serious reaction.
Several days into it I lost my voice, and my own health faded.

Other people around me made comment, but I could not respond.

My condition 'broke', all at once.
My voice returned immediately.
Someone passing by did ask if I was alright.
I said ....'yes, but I haven't eaten for several days....'

My wife went through surgery, and has recovered.
It's been many years. The cancer has not returned.

When looking back, I can't help but wonder....
 

Penumbra

Veteran Member
Premium Member
Do you feel the pain of others ? if yes, than why and how, if not, than why not.
Kindly Note: Including all living beings such as animals and birds.

_/\_
Chinu
I feel empathy for living things when I know they are in pain. I don't feel the physical pain.
 

freethinker44

Well-Known Member
Do you feel the pain of others ? if yes, than why and how, if not, than why not.
Kindly Note: Including all living beings such as animals and birds.

_/\_
Chinu

I have a difficult time picking up emotions from other people. I mean, through years of awkward social interactions and watching how people interact with other people and use body language, I understand what emotions thay are feeling, but I can't really empathize with them. I know how I am supposed to act in those situations, so I can usually feign sympathy and avoid the awkwardness now, but I don't empathize with them. I don't know why, it just doesn't feel real to me, even though I completely understand what they are feeling and why they are feeling it. Also related to this probably, sarcasm is completely lost on me and I can't tell when someone is joking around or being serious about something. So it isn't just pain that I don't empathize with.
 
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elmarna

Well-Known Member
YES! I feel the pain of others.
I also feel the negativity of them . It forms in a stress in my chest and makes me uncomfortable!
I have trouble produceing a abundance of positive energy at that time.
 

Madhuri

RF Goddess
Staff member
Premium Member
YES! I feel the pain of others.
I also feel the negativity of them . It forms in a stress in my chest and makes me uncomfortable!
I have trouble produceing a abundance of positive energy at that time.

Ah yes, and other people's positive energy affects us too. Sometimes you can feel it from others even when they are still and silent.
 

T-Dawg

Self-appointed Lunatic
"Empathy"? Sounds like a neurotypical fabrication, like the kind of vague word they would use to justify doing something that should logically be impossible.

No, it's not possible to feel the pain of others, unless your nervous systems are connected. It is sometimes possible to feel emotional pain at the sight of someone else's pain, but you're not really "sharing" "their" pain.
 

Madhuri

RF Goddess
Staff member
Premium Member
No, it's not possible to feel the pain of others, unless your nervous systems are connected. It is sometimes possible to feel emotional pain at the sight of someone else's pain, but you're not really "sharing" "their" pain.

I agree with this.
I do think that when it comes to emotions, we can mirror another's emotion through empathy (ie/ someone's sorrow or joy).
 

Thief

Rogue Theologian
Back to square one....

Emotions only?....I think it's more than that.

Sure the symptoms one are not the same as the other....
but to say not at all?

Is there confusion here, between sympathy and empathy?
 

Quagmire

Imaginary talking monkey
Staff member
Premium Member
I often feel that others are a pain, yes.

That was the question, right?
 

9Westy9

Sceptic, Libertarian, Egalitarian
Premium Member
Do you feel the pain of others ? if yes, than why and how, if not, than why not.

No. Mostly because I find it hard to imagine what they're going through. I feel empathy for them but I can't feel their pain. Especially when the pain is subjective
 
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