17 Of The Most Physically Unpleasant Sensations On Earth

"When you manage to swallow a sip of water wrong and it feels as if you have instead swallowed a flaming golf ball, which also takes forever to traverse your throat."

Sometimes there are physical things in life that simply make your skin crawl. So when Reddit user u/Wickham12 asked, "What's the most unpleasant sensation no one talks about?" I thought it would be helpful to share their answers to see if you relate. Here's some of what they had to say:

1. "The discomfort of being unable to sleep, coupled with restlessness."

Andreypopov / Getty Images/iStockphoto

—u/archonVm

"Mixed with the knowledge that you NEED to wake up early for something important that needs you well rested."

—u/consciuoslydone

2. "That feeling when you know you can't hack up that mucus at the back of your throat despite doing the most to get it out."

—u/skullfucyou

"How about when you finally hack up a huge glob of phlegm, but there's either no trash can nearby or no tissues to spit it into, or there's a bunch of people around you, and you don't want to look gross? So you can either keep it in your mouth for a while till you can spit it out, or you can...swallow it."

—u/Mash_Ketchum

3. "When you manage to swallow a sip of water wrong and it feels as if you have instead swallowed a flaming golf ball, which also takes forever to traverse your throat."

Maskot / Getty Images/Maskot

—u/Microflunkie

"You know what annoys me the most about swallowing something wrong, especially a drink? When someone keeps asking me if I'm okay. I'm busy coughing trying to clear the discomfort out of my throat, so it's really hard to talk because the sensation is horrible. I'd rather keep coughing without having to answer someone."

—u/idratherchangemyold1

4. "Trying to get dressed in a humid bathroom after getting out of the shower. You can’t fully get your skin dry enough to be rid of that icky, damp clothes-on-skin feeling."

—u/Maximum_Budget_991

5. "When you accidentally bite the inside of your lip or cheek and you get that lumpy flap of tender skin and proceed to accidentally bite it another 5–10 times before it heals properly."

Africaimages / Getty Images/iStockphoto

—u/CourtAlert8679

6. "That feeling of an eyelash stuck in your eye, but when you look, there's nothing there."

—u/Remarkable-Rocker

7. "Feeling a sudden urge to sneeze, being stuck in limbo for five seconds, then not sneezing. It always seems to happen when I'm speaking to someone too, so I look fucking goofy."

Raquel Arocena Torres / Getty Images

—u/Treesydoesit

8. "When you’re extremely tired and don’t really quite have to pee, but you feel a slight pressure in your bladder, so you know you’ll end up having to get up and pee in the middle of the night. So to spare yourself a middle-of-the-night piss to break your sleep, you get up and have to groggily stand in front of the toilet until you can pee."

—u/AquamarineCheetah

9. "When you know you have a popcorn kernel stuck in your gums, and you can’t dislodge it for the life of you. Endless torture and a raw tongue."

Jonathan Knowles / Getty Images

—u/ohofcorpse

"Don't worry, you can always dislodge it with a piece of floss and jam it so far into the space between your tooth and your gums that it gets hopelessly stuck and causes your gums to puff up."

—u/LocustPreacherFeast

10. "A cracked toenail that gets caught on your sock when you're putting it on."

—u/Thick-Truth8210

11. "When your pencil's eraser is used a little too much, and the metal scrapes the paper and you get that weird feeling."

Altayb / Getty Images

—u/moomoomil

"Oof. That's like when you try to write with a pen, only to realize that the tip is retracted."

—u/MamaSquash8013

12. "When your pants get stuck on a door handle."

—u/thesmellyofdoom

"It's always when you’re already pissed off."

—u/Toastybunzz

13. "Your hands itch, but you can’t find the actual itch to scratch."

Bymuratdeniz / Getty Images

—u/Alias-the-first

"And the itch is usually so deep that you find yourself biting your arms like a psycho."

—u/heygojo

14. "When it's really cold outside, so you dress really warm. But then you get really sweaty, and you can feel the sogginess of it. When you take off the warm layer, it's cold, sticky sweat and warmth at the same time."

—u/Laineybo_bain

15. "Wet socks."

Catherine Falls Commercial / Getty Images

—u/-Words-Words-Words-

"Also, I'd rank wet socks from stepping in a puddle, and you can't take your shoes off, as worse than accidentally stepping a socked foot in water on the floor at home."

—u/FallenEquinox

16. "That sharp shooting pain you sometimes get in your butt while on your period!"

—u/lmc_94

17. "Pulling a strand of hair out of your mouth. Just the thought makes my stomach crawl."

JGI / Getty Images/Tetra images RF

—u/Peachy33

"In the same vein, I could be starving half to death, and if I bite into food and there's a hair in it, I instantly can't eat."

—u/spare_me_over

Is there an unpleasant sensation that absolutely makes you squirm? If so, tell us what it is and why in the comments below.

Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.