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The Positive Use of Profanity **November 18, 2020**

**Swearing** is regarded as lazy or bad language or an offensive lapse of formality. When we were young, our parents and elders always told us not to swear or say any profanity language. They said that it is a lack of respect for things that are supposed to be sacred, or to people older than us and disrespect to religious aspects. ***Have you experienced being slapped by your parents when you said bad words back when you were younger?*** I never experienced though, but I do slap the mouth of my little siblings once I heard them saying any bad words and showing disrespect to the adults. And for those who have strict and religious parents, for sure you got belted round your ear when they hear you saying cursed words or name-calling. That is how parents discipline their kids in the past. Swearing, cursing, and other bad expressions are called **PROFANITY**. It is a language that is often regarded by certain parts of a culture to be strongly disrespectful, cruel, or offensive. It can imply a degradation of someone or something, or be considered as an expression of a strong impression towards something. *Some words had significantly powerful than others, and that the mere transition in a vowel is sometimes enough to wholly change the expressive effect of a word.* **But do you know that swearing can reduce the sensation of pain?** I was curious about the real explanation of why swearing can relieve pain and improves productivity. If you have read my previous article, I have mentioned there that swearing can diminish the sensation of pain. That is why I searched for this matter and made this article. Research says that the **hypoalgesic effect of swearing** has shown that the use of ***profanity can help reduce the sensation of pain.***

The effect has been illustrated as being a form of ***stress-reliever analgesia (or painkiller)***, with swearing because of a painful impulse being a kind of ***emotional response***. However, it is not clear yet how swearing produces the physical effects that have been illustrated in some research. ***Swearing in reaction to pain may activate the amygdala (one of the four basal ganglia in each cerebral hemisphere of our brain) which can trigger the fight-or-flight response. This then increases adrenaline or our natural form of pain relief***. [¹] Richard Stephens, John Atkins, and Andrew Kingston, researchers from **Keele University**, published "**Swearing as a Response to Pain**" in *NeuroReport*. The book shows that people who swore could hold their hands in ice water for twice as long as usual compared to if they used neutral words. They also noted less pain and that the effects are anything but maladaptive. Swearing really does enable you to endure the pain for longer than usual. Stephens advises people to swear if they hurt themselves. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypoalgesic_effect_of_swearing **Swearing can also improve productivity.** Another research shows that **swearing can improve fitness and endurance.** The study shows that people who swore against resistance while peddling on bikes had more strength than people who used normal words.

***The effect of profanity starts in the brain. People who are saying curse words while working out stimulates the adrenaline level that improves the heart rate and breathing, and increasing the oxygen intake.*** Swearing also ***produces a stress response that activates the body’s defensive reflex, which not only improves athletic performance but can also help with an injury.*** [²] https://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2019/10/30/researchers-using-curse-words-can-help-combat-pain-improve-your-workouts/ Nowadays, **swearing becomes an expression of many in expressing their strong feelings towards something or someone**. I even know someone who always says a bad word in every sentence he speaks. I wonder if he has a high tolerance for pain since saying bad words has become a part of his daily dialogue already. In my whole life, I swear, I only said a bad word once and even regretted after saying that word. It seems that my mouth don't have the courage to speak curse words in person. And every time I am in pain and I can't lash out my feeling, I just curse the pain in my mind. However, I can swear in the digital space as it is easier to type than to spill out. But I don't intentionally curse someone or something, it's just an expression adopted from this modern world. This article doesn't encourage you to swear 😅 Always be responsible for the words you want to speak out. Remember that words that have been spoken cannot be undone. And the meaning of the curse words you have said varies on how you have delivered it. Swear your pain if you are broken-hearted 🤣🤣 Swear your pain when you hurt yourself, but don't make it your everyday expression. **Written by: @Jane** **Sources:** [¹] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypoalgesic_effect_of_swearing [²] https://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2019/10/30/researchers-using-curse-words-can-help-combat-pain-improve-your-workouts/

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