Several points in your reflection caught my attention, such as the idea that pain is neither good nor bad, but I know from experience that I can classify it on that scale. ‘Good’ or ‘positive’ pain is pain that serves a useful purpose, such as muscle pain after exercise (we have all experienced this), which indicates progress, or pain that alerts us to an injury (we have also experienced this). ‘Bad’ or negative pain is pain that has no clear function, is chronic and intense, and is perceived as suffering that interferes with daily routine, such as unresolved emotional pain (like the premature death of a child...).

In this context, suffering without purpose is pain that has no useful function and is perceived as suffering, unless we are masochists. Now, chronic and severe pain prevents us from performing daily activities and we tend to alleviate it with medication. And when it comes to emotional pain, that's where things get grey, if we measure it by modern standards. Negative experiences and traumas can leave emotional wounds that generate “psychological” pain, which can manifest itself as fear, insecurity and resentment. Unlike positive emotions, intense or prolonged negative emotions can be painful and difficult to escape, because we tend to somatise them.

It took me almost three years to recover from the loss of my daughter, and I still mourn her. My son Matthew has been the best therapy I've ever had. The only chronic pain I've ever had was when I had a kidney stone in my right kidney; it's a pain that can't be relieved by sitting, standing, or lying down.

Twenty years ago, my brother Jhonny had surgery on both knees and was prescribed TRAMAL, a powerful and highly addictive painkiller. He took only one tablet and preferred to deal with the pain.

Life, my friend Hive account@tarazkp, is perceived as a complex world of pain because pain and suffering are inherent aspects of human existence, whether physical or emotional. However, the way we experience and process pain, and whether it becomes lasting suffering, depends largely on psychological and socio-cultural factors and on our personal ability to process difficult experiences in the search for meaning in our own lives.