When Pain is Unbearable

Pain of varying severity, whether it seems to primarily arise from the body or the mind, is inevitable. Physical pain can be so intense that one's visual field turns blue as loss of consciousness approaches. With a high pain threshold, such an intense bout of acute pain - when brief - is quite bearable, even interesting.

Even with a high pain threshold, when acute physical pain remains continuously very intense for longer periods, even 10 minutes, one sweats and cries - this is intense total mind-body suffering, no ifs & buts. The suffering may be beyond one's individual capacity to endure. At this point, the only approach that's helped me has been to see this as being more than my individual share of humanity's suffering, though it's landed on me, for me to "process".

One feels quite literally like one (one's ego?) is burning up. The only viable option, for me, has been to dedicate sitting with & holding this terrible suffering & fear, out of love & compassion, for the benefit of all sentient beings - so that our collective suffering may decrease. This can change everything - alchemy.