Inspiration & Paradox 14: Think Positive or Prepare for the Worst?

I have a low threshold for pain, that’s what others say about me. And I have been advised to not to worry too much whenever I have to go for jabs or any tests that could subject my body to some pain. I was told to think positively and tell myself repeatedly in my mind that it was not going to be painful at all. That way, everything would turn out right, so they said. However, whenever I did that, it didn’t work, I would end up screaming in pain. And somehow, whenever I prepared myself for the worst pain and tried to imagine how bad the pain could be, it turned out to be rather bearable. And how I have rationalised it is about expectations. When you set your expectation of pain too low and do not mentally prepare yourself for the pain, the actual pain experienced could be overwhelming and become more than what you can bear, whereas if you expect too much of the pain, you would in the end feel that the pain is actually no big deal.