What is the most painful sensation you've ever felt?
The worst pain I've ever felt was after bone surgery in my foot. I had to get a bone straightened in my foot, and the surgery consisted of cutting a v-notch in my metatarsal and then screwing a long metal pin into the bone to keep it straight. The surgeon had put a nerve block in my leg, just below the knee, which completely stopped all sensation. But the nerve block wore off about five hours after the surgery and then I experienced what can only be called exquisite pain. I felt the most intense incredible pain set in briskly, beginning in the foot and then gradually crowding every competing sensation and thought from my conscious mind. It changed my vision, the way I perceived the world around me. I couldn't concentrate, I couldn't think, I couldn't even vegetate and watch TV. All I felt was the intensely sharp undiminished pain in my bone. Yes, of course, I took whatever medication they prescribed for pain, but it really did very little to take the edge off. The pain lasted for 3 days, when it gradually subsided.

I recall this sensation today when I find myself in a situation where I think I can't stand another minute. All I need to do is to reflect upon the day I survived after my bone surgery and then I know I can certain withstand just about anything.

The human mind is an incredible thing. You can bear much more than you think. So what's the most intense pain you've ever experienced? And how did you survive to tell the tale?