An expression of happiness, sorrow, relief, anger, disgust or excitement, you name the emotion and there is a cuss word for it. Swearing has become cathartic. Most of us can hardly go a sentence or two without using a swear word. But did you know that swearing can actually help reduce pain?
According to the Association for Psychological Science, more than an expression of agony, dropping the F word and other expletives is actually a way of getting rid of it.
Researchers did a little experiment to test this theory and asked college students to immerse their hands in cold water. They measured the time they were able to do it and compared it to the number of cuss words they spoke.
It was found that when the participants abused, not only did they report less pain than those who abstained from swearing, they also lasted in the water for 40 more seconds, reported Medical Daily.
The researchers claimed that the lash out is actually the mind’s interpretation of verbal fighting designed to intimidate the attacker. It dulls the pain and soothes the fear.