Why are some things dangerous but not painful, like cutting yourself, and others are painful but not dangerous, like hurting your teeth?

Question

Why are some things dangerous but not painful, like cutting yourself, and others are painful but not dangerous, like hurting your teeth?

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Answer 1

Danger and pain are related in the brain, so much so that you can imagine pain enough to make it feel real, but that pain that is caused by the nerves can only hurt where the nerves are. Being scared and pain are not 100% related and though they may both cause similar emotions and regulate memories in the same brain regions, different levels of focus, adrenaline, goals, genetics, predisposition, social factors and expectations can all play a role in the brain’s focus, including its attention to pain. That is a large part of the reason different things cause different amounts of pain at different times to different people.