Why would someone who is already in pain wish to inflict it upon others?

Sometimes, people may want to get back at the world for the pain inflicted on them, or struggle to process their emotions in a healthy way, and their desire to inflict pain upon others could possibly be a coping mechanism. Maybe this person struggles with intrusive thoughts or desires, and does not know how to handle these thoughts or desires, and need help perhaps through therapy, apps like 7 cups, mindfulness activities or other activities which can increase a person’s mental well-being and health. Sometimes, they may want a reaction out of the person, due to loneliness. They should be supported.

The person may be feeling out of control and want other to feel how they do, they figure it's something that they can control.

Many people believe that if they cause other people to be in pain it will help them feel better about themselves, it is as if they think they're not alone in how they're feeling

It makes them feel better aboutique themselves because perhaps they are being bullied by someone else or being abused at home etc

because they feel the need to drag others down with them. Don't let them do it, instead ask if they want to talk and just be their friend

Because they don´t know how else to cope, I think. When you are in a lot of pain, some of the time you do end up inflicting it on others. That can be a reaction of feeling jealous that someone might have it better than you emotionally or just generally not knowing what to do with all of the pain that you feel.

as an act of revenge...or...simply the same way an injured elephant flings itself around and hurts everyone else...the elephant is only trying to fling the pain away. Not understanding that flinging does ..nothing.

I honestly think as humans we don't wish to do this however sometime we have to be aware of the impact if our actions. Honesty is always best and listening to each other is the only way forward. I remember a girl friend asking me what a guy meant by his behaviour and he stopped calling. He stopped calling as he had lost interest! He just isn't into you. We gave to be honest and listen to each other.

To make themselves feel better, as if they aren't alone in their pain, and need somewhere to put out their energy and frustrations.

When people are in pain sometimes they look for an outlet to deal with that pain, and for them, it may mean hurting others. Some people have low self-esteem or feel powerless and being horrible to others may make them feel better about themselves.

sometimes, people would be so broken that they wish others shared a similar pain. When those who constantly face pain and hardships see others happy, they tend to inflict pain upon others. This might give them a sense of relief that they are not the only one who is suffering. If life has been too unfair with a person, they start to question why it's happening only with them and why are others happy. Seeing everyone around them happy might drive them to get negative thoughts and wishing to see others in pain. This is a common tendency for people who are very hurt.

Someone who is already in pain may wish for others to feel their pain to make them understand. If someone was beaten up as a child they may also beat up their children because they may not know another way to approach the problem. If someone has been in pain for a little bit now they may be mind-controlled in a way to make them beat up others. Some people who are bullied may target others like him because he was bulied. that is why someone in pain may hurt others.

There are some people in this world who want others to hurt just as badly as they do. It's unfortunate that they've come to this point but it's usually because they've been quite bitter for a long time. Have you considered the importance of your relationship with this person? Is there anything you can do to take care of yourself, especially if the relationship is important to you? Sometimes it's better to take care of ourselves because we're not going to be able to change the person. The only thing we can change in this world is ourselves and how we handle situations.

Sometimes people in pain inflict it on others as 1) its what they know and experience so are inflicting pain as they have no other response, 2) they are not meaning to inflict it. Some people inflict pain without the realisation they are doing it, so its hard for them to stop their behaviour if they are unaware. 3) They want other people to feel there pain - some people want other people to feel pain so they can try and understand how they are feeling and making them feel pain the person may see as the best way of doing it.

Someone who is already in pain might wish to inflict it upon others because some feel that if they bring someone else down, it will bring them up. While this is often not the case, some will continue to hurt others in order to feel better about themselves. Some feel that if they hurt others in a way that they are not hurting, they are better because they are not feeling the same pain that person is. People usually want to feel like they are better than others, because of this they will do anything they can to bring themselves up. This is not the case for everyone, though.

Hurt people hurt people. so if someone is in pain and hurt they might want someone else to feel as they do. in most cases, that's not okay. it's important that you heal yourself first so you don't have those negative thoughts anymore. it will be hard but it's a learning experience. once you figure out your issue and fix it everything will work out. it's best to take time to yourself and don't allow just anyone in your space if you feel like causing pain to others because you are in pain yourself, take that time and find ways to heal and become the best you.

It’s hard to feel like you’re the only one going through and feeling what you’re feeling. Often times we try to bring people to our level, and in a case like this, the thought could be “the more misery and pain, the better”. We may want to blame others for our hurt, and may want them to feel the suffering we believe they have caused. Understanding it’s not about anyone else, finding support from those who truly want happiness for you is a great place to start. Your suffering because you are allowing yourself to suffer. You have to want to change your thoughts and feelings, and learn new ways to do that, to help you see things differently. 7Cups, like so many other organizations is a good place to help you sort through those feelings, helping you to learn the basis of your hurt and how it’s brought you to such thoughts. You are never alone, even though at times it feels so lonely. There are always people who care and genuinely want the best for you and your life

Yes, it is an indeed interesting proposition, if one has suffered then why would someone like to replicate it to others? I guess the difference in action lies in how the person who experienced misfortunes processes them? One of the people who was cheated would consider it as a social problem and might try to solve the issue by spreading knowledge among other fellows while the other one having the same experiences could process it differently to become a cheat himself, professing the world is evil and hence it deserves so. Lack of empathy often stems from the lack of experience of love and compassion during one's younger years.

In Germany we have a saying that says something like "Shared suffering is half suffering." This actually refers to talking openly about what bothers you and venting so for example someone might feel better after they came here and opened up to a Listener and so "shared their suffering" with them. Yet there might be people who suppress things going on with them so much that they don't even realize and they kind of shift that negative energy and use the other person as an outlet which might be consciously or even without them realizing they are hurting someone (talking about emotional pain). Another explanation would be that they feel it is "fair" that if they suffer others have to do so as well. These are just example answers and I am sure there are more possibilities. As you already stated a person that hurts others can (doesn't have to) be in (emotional) pain themselves. If you feel like they are not completely suppressing it and running away from it it might be an idea to carefully confront them with what you observe (without being judging or they will probably shut you out) and lend them an open ear so they can "share their suffering" at a way that is healthier for both, for example by venting. You might also let them know that there are options like 7cupsoftea where they can open up anonymously to strangers if it is nothing they want to talk about with you or anyone in real life. Yet it might be that the person does not even realize their behavior or that they suppress their own negative feelings so that there is no guarantee for that to succeed.

1) They may want to do this as a form of revenge. When somebody is hurt, they might want the person who made them feel that way to experience the same thing that they did. They do this because they feel that they didn't deserve what happened to them and that the other person deserves the same thing. 2) They might also do it because they don't want to be the only one who feels that pain. Sometimes you just don't want to be alone in something, and as wrong as it sounds to want somebody else to hurt just for you to feel comfort, it happens.

When you are in pain, you can find it difficult to regulate your emotions. Sometimes hurting someone else feels like you are redirecting the pain away from yourself. By hurting someone else, you can forget your own pain temporarily. However, this never resolves the problem and can create feelings of guilt and shame later. As a society, we are not taught to manage our emotions, to understand them, label them or accept them. We are often taught anger is bad when it can be useful. Emotions are never good or bad, they just are. But when we tell ourselves our emotions are bad, this can have negative consequences.

This is very common. Basically, someone who's going through pain is at a bad place. Our mind cannot handle being in a bad place, which leads to a chain of unhealthy coping mechanisms, some are directed at harming ourselves, others at harming others. Inflicting pain on others could serve as a distraction, or as a means to punish someone, anyone, for the pain they're experiencing. It's a sort of tit-for-tat logic that's skewed, but people often say that they have terribly tragic backstories and they're so hurt they start inflicting pain on others. Think of stories; almost all fictional villains have bad backstories. They aren't right; just suffering.

I believe that someone who is already in pain is blinded by their own emotions and so unable to understand or feel for others. Their minds are so cluttered with negativity that they believe they are the only ones who suffer from sorrow in their lives. They believe they are alone and have no one to help them. Because they believe no one is looking out for them, they may develop feelings of envy and hatred against others. They begin to believe that life is unjust and that they should not be the only ones who are suffering leading to strong feelings of inflicting pain on others.

Many people who are in pain are in a place where they handle things out of emotion instead of rationality, which causes them to do things they wouldn't usually have done. I feel like in most cases, it is not someone's wish to inflict it upon others, but an unconscious to react to what has been happening to someone. Many people reflect what has been done to them onto other people. For some, they also see the infliction of pain onto others as the last way out of their own misery. Though some people hurt others on purpose, many people who have suffered don't do so.

I would say that the person themselves are suffering and maybe that they don't know they need help, but their actions speak otherwise. To give an example, In the film It's Complicated, there's a scene when the kids find out that their parents might be getting back together, and one of them makes the comment, "We still haven't gotten used to the divorce yet." Then, when things don't work out for the parents, the kids are all in bed together, teary-eyed from the confusion. Another example is that If your life or a relationship is going badly, revenge is not your last hope for renewal. In fact, it takes away much more than it gives. Trying to figure out how to get back at someone uses up time that could be spent in many more positive ways to heal your self.

Someone who is already in pain might want to inflict pain upon other because they feel like they are alone and they want people to feel the exact same way. I have experienced people like this in many different places. They feel lonely and want someone to talk to them, to them it doesn't matter about the reasons why the person is talking to them. They just do not wish to be all alone. They wish for someone to be there just for them. They want people to listen to what they have to say, no matter how toxic it is.

inflicting pain on others, while your in pain, makes your feel good. because someone other than yourself is hurting. but at what cost? you just hurt someone you care for, for tempory relief of your own pain. instead of hurting that person you could have just asked them for help or support.

When people experience pain it can resemble a heavy load. If you carry too much, it is often easier to hand some of the load to others. People who do not experience empathy or cannot share their emotions to feel release sometimes drift off into inflicting pain on others. They feel that this is a possibility to share their feelings and force people into empathy as they are now feeling alike. This, however, is very harmful and it is important to stress that there are other ways. Experiencing empathy, talking to someone about the burden you have to carry, or just writing down your emotions for yourself are methods which could help to relieve you of your pain and share it in a non-harmful way.

Because that's their escape route. To feel good that they're not alone who felt pain. To get the revenge they never had. To escape from the reality of being alone in the pain. It's hard for them to see someone happy or content. It burns them from inside and they believe they deserve to do this. At end for them it is their sad history or present that drives them to hatred and evil.. And they can justify it. It's hard for them but they will be always saying that they're doing the right thing. To be able to escape from their own demons

It might stem from the belief that the person the aggression is aimed at somehow hurt them or is responsible for their suffering. It's a reaction to a factual or perceived pain that was inflicted on the body or the spirit. People who are in pain and who are aggressive in return might not be mature and present enough to see themselves as aggressors and take responsibility for their actions. This requires self-reflection, and people who are in pain are occupied with their own pain to notice the pain they inflict on others around them, or to understand its gravity.