# Type and Pain Tolerance/Sensitivity to Touch



## Nickel (Apr 7, 2010)

What is your type, how high is your pain tolerance (from experience, it's difficult to properly gage this) and are you sensitive to touch? 

I'll start: I'm an ISTj and I have a very high pain tolerance. I'm not a very physical person (I don't even like to be hugged) but I'm extremely ticklish. I don't crave touch at all, and I get "hurt" often without even flinching.

I feel like there's some sort of correlation here, but I'm not sure. I wanted to see what others think.


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## unico (Feb 3, 2011)

I'm an INFJ and have a pretty high pain tolerance, supposedly, though one thing I can't tolerate is nausea. I'm emetophobic. I also don't like most people touching me -- only people I'm very close to.


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## Van (Dec 28, 2009)

My Mum is ISTJ and she seems to have the highest pain tolerance ever (according to her dentist, at least).
I'm INTP and I'm pretty average. With small injuries, a lot of the pain that you feel is really in your head and if you just think about something else and don't concentrate how much it hurts, you can get over it easily. I'm not overly sensitive to touch, but being touched by another person is always a little surprising and weird.


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## marzipan01 (Jun 6, 2010)

Si is most physically aware and physically sensitive, I think. I am ENFP and only know I am hungry or dehydrated because my mind starts fantasizing about doughnuts. I don't actually physically sense things very much at all. I try, oh, how I try! I smell more in my dreams than in real life. It's very sad.


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## Tad Cooper (Apr 10, 2010)

marzipan01 said:


> Si is most physically aware and physically sensitive, I think. I am ENFP and only know I am hungry or dehydrated because my mind starts fantasizing about doughnuts. I don't actually physically sense things very much at all. I try, oh, how I try! I smell more in my dreams than in real life. It's very sad.


 That's the same with me XD I generally only notice hunger when I get grouchy or really tired (I'm hypoglycemic). I have a very high tolerence for pain compared to alot of people I know. I can keep going through huge amounts of pain, but eventually it'll wear me down (takes a good couple of weeks of pain).


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## TheWildOne (Feb 22, 2011)

marzipan01 said:


> I am ENFP and only know I am hungry or dehydrated because my mind starts fantasizing about doughnuts. I don't actually physically sense things very much at all. I try, oh, how I try!


Same here. It must be an iNtuitive thing.

I tend to forget my own physical needs all the time, e.g. I will stay up late until unreasonable hours unless my husband literally drags me to bed ("...but but but I was reading the most interesting thread on correlations between functions!"); I realize I am thirsty when I notice the water glass I purposefully set right next to my monitor is untouched; I don't even notice if I am sitting in an uncomfortable position until I get a cramp or something, and so on and so forth.

And with pain... I don't even notice pain unless it is relatively strong, or it has been biting at me for a long time. Something that could contribute to this is that I have suffered from back pains for years due to a medical condition (scoliosis), so I can simply tune out the pain and go on my merry way until it gets unbearably strong. :happy:

However, I do love being hugged and caressed by my loved ones (mother, siblings, SO, close female friends...) I don't think I could live long without my regular intake of hugs, you know. :tongue:

Weird...


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## Drewbie (Apr 28, 2010)

ISTP and I have a very high pain tolerance. Very low tolerance for casual touching though. I can be casually touched by a SO or a very close friend, but anyone else is likely to get punched if they touch me when I'm not expecting it. Casual or soft touching feels unpleasant. I'm not exaggerating when I say I'd rather someone shove me into a wall to get my attention than tap me.


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## Mulberries (Feb 17, 2011)

I have low pain tolerance and I'm very sensitive to touch. Just thinking about the dentist makes me tense and nauseated.


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## Hastings (Jan 8, 2011)

INFJ, fairly high pain tolerance. When I've been to the dentist, the sound of the drill has been worse than anything... It resonates in the head.


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## marzipan01 (Jun 6, 2010)

Cruciferae said:


> ISTP and I have a very high pain tolerance. Very low tolerance for casual touching though. I can be casually touched by a SO or a very close friend, but anyone else is likely to get punched if they touch me when I'm not expecting it. Casual or soft touching feels unpleasant. I'm not exaggerating when I say I'd rather someone shove me into a wall to get my attention than tap me.


Weird. I'm just going to try to wrap my mind around that. It's going to take me a while.


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## marzipan01 (Jun 6, 2010)

Yeah, I guess now that I think about it INFP and INTP's are probably the most sensitive to negative physical sensations. As well as ENTJs and ENFJs. Everyone I know that has those personality types complains about their sensations incessantly.

Well, ENFJs I know have learned to deal with it by meditating, etc. But the ENTJs I know, all I can say is they won't admit to feeling physical pain and they talk all tough but more often then not their sick, twisted humor disguises the anguish associated with physical pain they receive from needles, etc.


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## Tiramesu (Mar 20, 2011)

I have no idea about my type but i am extremely sensible and i feel a deep pain for smallest things, but i can tolerate it.


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## Aelthwyn (Oct 27, 2010)

I don't think I have a high pain tollerance at all, I think I tend to be pretty much a 'baby' when it comes to any kind of pain. Partly this is because I don't see any reason to suffer through it and put up with it. I'll take adville, and go to sleep, anything to avoid putting up with the pain, not to mention I find it very hard to concentrate on anything and find my energy severely sapped by pain. I actually hate how I'll start to go faint over something when mentally I'm totally fine and just want to take care of the problem, maybe even inspect the wound...but instead my vision goes and I have to lay down and try not to think about it. 

I can be pretty oblivious to my phsycial surroundings/sensations (except I have an amazing sense of smell which is constantly distracting me, it gets annoying). 

However, I seem to practically leech energy off people when I touch them - I get a little boost of energy/happiness, even just from brushing against a stranger (unless I get a bad vibe from them). I love being crammed into places with people pressing against me. I love love love hugs and cuddling, and I have an urge to touch people a lot. I love to run my fingers through people's hair and give backrubs. What I really really love is someone tracing their fingers lightly over my skin, especially on my back. It gives me such delicious shivers! I'm only somewhat ticklish - which is probably why I can enjoy the light touch, and I don't get easily startled by people touching me.


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## Rediactor (Jan 15, 2011)

I dont know.... I hate being in pain... So i usually try to avoid it (activities that could hurt me) but if i do have to go through it, i wouldn't mind... I would go like 'oh! It hurts! Haha! I fell over and sprained my ankle! Haha! How funny i must've looked!'..even when i'm sick, i try to laugh and be strong.... I've found that it helps..mental strength must be... But i'm usually tired so i try to go to sleep. Also I'm lazy so i put off eating food or drinking water until i feel like it...... I dont mind people tapping me to get my attention but not when they go 'taptaptaptaptaptaptaptaptap'!!!


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## Paradigm (Feb 16, 2010)

I have an above-average pain tolerance, but also an above-average (natural) drug tolerance. To be honest, I whine more than I hurt most of the time because complaining is comforting 

As for touch, I'm not all that sensitive, but I am hyper-aware of when strangers or acquaintances touch me. Don't like it at all. I do, however, welcome hugs and cuddles from close friends and family.


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## Dino (Mar 25, 2011)

There's no way this is correlated to type.
Males have higher pain tolerance than females, that's it.


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## unico (Feb 3, 2011)

Dino said:


> There's no way this is correlated to type.
> Males have higher pain tolerance than females, that's it.


Actually, I've always heard females have a higher pain tolerance than males, on average.


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## TheWildOne (Feb 22, 2011)

unico said:


> Actually, I've always heard females have a higher pain tolerance than males, on average.


And there's differences even within each genre, as a quick read of this thread could show. No idea if it really has any relation with personality types, but not all men or women are the same on this point, it seems.


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## Dino (Mar 25, 2011)

unico said:


> Actually, I've always heard females have a higher pain tolerance than males, on average.


I guess it could depend where and how is the hit.


Type is about information processing, how the hell could it have a relation with pain tolerance?


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## snail (Oct 13, 2008)

INFP. I am abnormally sensitive to touch, sound, and emotions (If someone yells at me or says something critical, it can cause a physical pain under my ribs that lasts all week. If someone hugs me, I feel the euphoric glow from it for days afterward.) I am also abnormally sensitive to medications, and cannot consume caffeine without unwanted side effects. I get buzzed off of a single glass of wine, and become uncomfortably high if I have more than one hit of weed. 

I need to wear earplugs most of the time because having a television on in the next room is very uncomfortable without them, as are the traffic noises where I live. When I listen to music, I tend to keep the volume on the lowest possible setting. When it is not too loud or aggressive for my comfort, I believe I enjoy music more than other people, and notice more of the details. I can play most instruments by ear.

Childhood memory: The elementary school children were messing around giving "Indian burns." It hurt badly. I cried. I got teased for it and was told, "You're faking. That doesn't hurt." Then I watched them do the same thing to each other while laughing about it and calling me a baby. The experience caused high levels of emotional anguish (likely more than someone normal would have felt) in addition to the lingering physical pain. 

I believe I also process food differently, because I don't need to eat as much food as a normal person. If I were to do so, I would become even more obese than I naturally am. It seems that my body likes to dwell on everything it experiences, and absorbs more information from each piece of what it senses than other people's bodies.

Because of this, I tend to withdraw into myself and attempt to tune things out as much as I possibly can, which sometimes makes me seem like I am oblivious to what is going on around me.


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## Promethea (Aug 24, 2009)

INTP, and I have a high pain tolerance, but my body is -extremely- sensitive. I can handle pain because I learned how to separate myself from it. I'm not sure if its meditation, but I can balance my energy in such a way it feels like I'm almost just outside of my body, all around it, not exactly in it, experiencing the pain.


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## Sily (Oct 24, 2008)

INFP. Lowest tolerance to pain there is. 10 seconds of any type of pain and I want it _gone_ _now_. Hugs is okay with husband and family but anyone else that comes into *my bubble* and I'll have you arrested for offensive touching. One of the people I used to work with while I was waitressing would run his finger down my back at inopportune times and laugh, because the skin on my back would move just like a cat's skin does when it's stroked. Sensitive doesn't even begin to describe the nerve endings in my skin. I'm also sensitive to loud sounds. I can go all day with no music or TV on and be as happy as a lark. Silence is my buddy.


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## Gaminegirlie (Jul 31, 2010)

Low tolerance here. Theres nothing worse than the thought of someone hitting me. I am very sensitive to touch, very ticklish. I try to avoid contact as much as possible but I'm not repulsed by touch, except the person is indeed a certified creep.


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## MonieJ (Nov 22, 2010)

ISTJ 
Pain tolerance- very high, I get cut all the time without noticing  odd right?
I dnt like to be hugged and stuff but I allow it and I am very ticklish as well


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## Dancnonthestars (Dec 27, 2010)

I have a high pain tolerence.  I love hugs. My pride will not allow me to have a low pain tolerence. If I'm hurting, I will focus on something else instead. The pain stays in the back of my mind.


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## Disfigurine (Jan 1, 2011)

INFP.
I have a pretty high tolerance for pain.

All of my senses are ultra sensitive, though.
I get overwhelmed, upset and sick easily because of that.
Light, sounds, smells, etc can really mess up my day.

I don't really care to be touched much. At least not when I'm not expecting it.
I think it is because I am not used to it, though.
Probably wouldn't mind in certain cases.

I should just go live in a cave.


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## xDestinyx (Apr 15, 2011)

I'm INTJ and I would say I have a rather high tolerance for pain. Though, I'm not certain, of course, seeing as I've never been anyone else. But things that make most people say, "Ow! Sh*t!" Hardly elicit a reaction from me. However, I'm rather sensitive to touch. Very few people can touch me without it feeling very uncomfortable. I also really hate hugs, especially from people I hardly know. I don't know why people think introducing themselves with a hug is a good idea... at all... *shrugs* But, maybe I'm just weird


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## theseventhbell (Apr 16, 2011)

INFP with a high tolerance for pain. I can pretty much endure anything. I've had people watch me get tattoos and be mesmerized by my reaction. I react to the feeling, but I don't wince, I smile. I seem to enjoy testing my thresholds. I can also walk anywhere, for any length of time. 

Casually, I'm hyper-sensitive. I love the resonance of another human's touch. It electrifies me. I'm also an empath (I wonder if there are any other INFP empaths, seems like there would be) so any human connection I get I become over-stimulated me. That said, if the person touching me has intentions of malice, I can feel it like fire in their fingertips. 

INFP, happy to bear your pain, overjoyed to feel your affection.


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## Elsewhere1 (Mar 22, 2011)

ESFJ with a high tolerance for pain. Case and point: 10 and a half hours of labor and no epidural by choice. Don't get me wrong, it was the worst pain of my life. However, it wasn't unbearable. Emotional pain seems to affect me more so than physical. Emotional pain will bring me to my knees in a heartbeat. Whereas physical pain is just a nusance................


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## C. C. Scott (Jun 9, 2014)

Dino said:


> There's no way this is correlated to type.
> Males have higher pain tolerance than females, that's it.


I feel like this is much of an assumption.


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## PrankyButSaintly (Feb 3, 2014)

I'm an ESFJ and I'm very physically sensitive and very "huggy"


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## Sun Lips (Jan 28, 2013)

INFJ - high tolerance for pain, but otherwise pretty sensitive physically. Being tickled is torture, and little things like mosquito bites drive me crazy with the itching and burning. I do get a lot of bruises and scratches I can't identify, so I guess I'm not so sensitive when I'm going about my day and sustain small injuries. But if a physical sensation is "intruding" or distracting me, I really don't like that.


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## inthesnowman (Jun 18, 2014)

ENTP, and high compared to most people. but I wouldn't say it's far above average.


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## Kavik (Apr 3, 2014)

Drewbie said:


> ISTP and I have a very high pain tolerance. Very low tolerance for casual touching though. I can be casually touched by a SO or a very close friend, but anyone else is likely to get punched if they touch me when I'm not expecting it. Casual or soft touching feels unpleasant. I'm not exaggerating when I say I'd rather someone shove me into a wall to get my attention than tap me.


Yes. The only low pain tolerance I have is for stomach cramps.


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## Sevenblade (May 26, 2014)

INTJ. My pain tolerance is pretty high, but on the other hand, I have a rather low tolerance for physical irritation. I've never been sure why. As for sensitivity, I'm not sure what the question is asking exactly. I am sensitive to touch in that I *do not* like it from strangers or people I don't know (and like) very well. Unless I've given someone permission to do so, they should not be touching me.


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## GundamChao (Jun 17, 2014)

I'm an ENFP, and I suppose I have a high pain tolerance. More often than not, pain ends up urging me on. I find it whimsical, tbh.

And as for sensitivity to touch... I don't know. How should I be able to compare that to what others experience? But however sensitive I am, though, I wish it was more. I love touch. Easily my favorite sense. :tongue:


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## jasakki (Jun 23, 2014)

INFJ. Very high pain tolerance, I'm pretty much 'numb' with all skin senses. I like really tight hugs too (but not be squazed).


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## Icemanlx (Jan 18, 2014)

I love hugs, It must be the caring or affection. I have a low pain tolerance. I've been called sensitive enough times to count. I've been going to alot of EDM festivals lately and its all about hugs and unity through music


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## KidThunder (Oct 9, 2013)

1. Istp
2. sensitive to touch but low pain sensitivity.
3. i dont like hugs unless they're from girls. but im not a perv i swear :dry:


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## CupofSunkyst (Jun 24, 2014)

I already had a low pain tolerance and a sensitivity to touch, but a year and a half ago I got diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. So yeah, ouch all the time. I'm an ISFP btw.


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