17: IRL Gom Jabbar Test

You've heard of animals chewing off a leg to escape a trap. That's an animal kind of trick. A human would remain in the trap and endure the pain feigning death that he might kill the trapper and remove a threat to his kind. ― Frank Herbert, Dune

If you're unfamiliar with the book Dune, there's a test where the main character has to put his hand in a box filled with unbearable pain, and if he takes his hand out, he gets killed. The test determines what kind of man he is: un-evolved humans will do anything to avoid feeling pain, even die, whereas a more evolved person will withstand an extraordinary amount of pain for a greater cause.

Someone I admire and trust challenged me to an IRL version of this test yesterday.

Probably, everyone's IRL gom jabbar test is different. Do you know what causes you the most unbearable kind of emotional pain? Would you willing to feel it to an excruciating amount, if to do so would undoubtably make you stronger?

I haven't chewed off my leg yet, but it's getting tempting.