I was running up to the entrance of the Student Union Building at UNM as I am oft wont to do. I don't like to walk, I prefer to run. I'm not in a hurry, it just feels better. I ran up the ramp and went to jump, but missed my target. For one brief second I thought I was going to make it, but no. My right knee hit the railing with a fairly nasty ring, and down I went.

First it just hurt, a lot. The kind of pain where at some level, it feels almost distant, but the only thought in your mind is "ohpleaseohpleasestophurtingnownownow". Then it attacked.

I felt intensely nauseated for a while, and a strange buzz was ringing throughout my body Still the only thought was to have the hurting stop. Minutes passed. Eventually the all-encompassing throb subsided to a level where I thought I could get to my feet. This I did, with some difficulty, and entertained the thought of going to get something to eat, which was my original goal. I estimate the outside temperature to be roughtly 60 degrees Fahrenheit. I went inside, which was considerably warmer, and felt instantly nauseous again. So much for eating. Back out I went.

For some reason, my right arm had gone mostly numb. Perhaps from shock. It warmed up withing a few minutes, though, so at this point I figured I should examine my knee - was it bleeding? Turning a sickly green? Unimpressively, it was not. Only a slight reddening and perhaps a bit of swelling. Also, it was settling into a disturbing rhythm of pain which I interpreted to mean that I was going to hurt for a while.

Hoping to find some way to cope with the hurting while I waited until I could walk reliably again, I experimented with touching the afflicted area. My fingers were cool, which felt good, but friction or ocscillating motion of any kind didn't help at all. Lightly digging my longish fingernails roughly an inch away from the red area helped considerably, though, so I did that for a while. I wonder if this has anything to do with the principles of acupuncture.

Eventually I stood again and tried to reenter the building. This was now possible. I managed to order a meal, but my appetite was strangely small. The cool Dr Pepper was nice, though.

It was time to go to class. Walking was difficult, but possible. The pain level then and now (roughly 2 hours from the incident) later hasn't changed. Riding my motorcycle home was difficult. Hope I'm doing better tomorrow.

Strangely enough, my observed progression of intense physical pain is slightly different:

1. Impact. In the case onhand, we're talking about hitting a rock with the front wheel of a bicycle and driving a spoke well into the calf.
Step one is usually not even observed, as I found myself on the ground with about three frames in mind - Having looked at the sky I didn't see the rock, but got a good glimpse of the grass encroaching via the handlebar.

2. On the ground, in shock, what the hell happened. Looking around, I see my bike obviously out of shape, a metal rod going into my windpants (which is removed with one pull) but everything else seems alright. Robotically I get up - no pain, but my body temperature has dropped quite a few degrees; I feel sterile.

3. Two minutes down the road, sitting down at my house the pain sets in. Realizing that there is no longer a need to stay coherent and free of pain, my mind enlightens me as to what the problem is.

From this point on we follow Starrynight's observations rather close, with the pain of having an injured muscle and the process of disinfecting such a deep wound.

I still think it's comforting to know that we can mentally control pain, therefore that it is used by our body to help us... not inflicted by the environment.