Don’t we all like torturing ourselves a little now and then? The most immediate answer will likely be a firm handshake. But when it comes to a tragedy we witness on our morning commute or news of violence on social media, we suddenly feel compelled by a strong, unexplainable pull to stare at the sight.

Scientists have been investigating why we can’t look away from disasters and some have suggested it’s the preventative mechanism that gives us crucial information about the possible danger. Another study even found that we react to and learn more from negative experiences than we do positive ones.

Given those strange workings of the human psyche, it’s only fair that a subreddit like r/MakeMeSuffer exists on Reddit, and that it’s home to a solid 1 million members. The community’s description keeps it simple, yet harrowingly effective: “If it hurts to look at, post it.” Don’t say we didn’t warn you.

#1 Shelter Workers Organize This Cat’s Birthday Hoping Someone Will Adopt Her, But No One Turns Up

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#2 True Pain

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#3 Antheraea Polyphemus... Basically A Tarantula With Wings

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Dr. John Mayer, a clinical psychologist at Doctor On Demand, has been researching what happens to our brains when we see destruction and he identified that a particular process in our brains is the one to blame. “A disaster enters into our awareness—this can be from a live source such as driving by a traffic accident or from watching a news report about a hurricane, a plane crash or any disaster," he explained to NBC News.

"This data from our perceptual system then stimulates the amygdala (the part of the brain responsible for emotions, survival tactics and memory). The amygdala then sends signals to the regions of the frontal cortex that are involved in analyzing and interpreting data. Next, the brain evaluates whether this data (awareness of the disaster) is a threat to you, thus judgment gets involved. As a result, the 'fight or flight' response is evoked."

#4 Sad Suffering

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#5 P A I N

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#6 Mosquito Collection

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Incredibly, "Witnessing violence and destruction, whether it is in a novel, a movie, on TV or a real life scene playing out in front of us in real time, gives us the opportunity to confront our fears of death, pain, despair, degradation and annihilation while still feeling some level of safety."

This phenomenon is also experienced in other situations, like standing at the edge of the cliff or when looking through the glass at a lion at the zoo. “We watch because we are allowed to ask ourselves ultimate questions with an intensity of emotion that is uncoupled from the true reality of the disaster.”

#7 Siberian Seasons. Frost & Mosquitoes

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#8 Ah Yes, The Drowning Seat

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#9 Dental Practice Heads

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#10 Jogger's Nipple

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#11 My Dad Had A Car Wreck. He Went Without A Bone Flap For 6 Months

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#12 The Water In Our School

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#13 DIY Fanatic Proudly Shows Off Her Upcycled Drinks Trolley But Gets Absolutely Savaged For 'Ruining An Antique'

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#14 Life

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#15 Good Old Cassette

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#16 Worst Bath Ever

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#17 Good Idea

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#18 Keep Smiling, Nothing To See Here

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#19 Friendly Reminder To Clean Your Keyboard

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#20 I Have Seen Your X-Ray Posts So I Bring You Face Mris

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#21 I Love “Coffee”

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#22 Scorpion I Just Happened To Find In My Bra Before Putting It On (Teaspoon For Scale)

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#23 Cockroach Cake

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#24 Yikes

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#25 Nooooooo Jesus Nooo

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#26 Forbidden Chocolate

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#27 Must Feel Great

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#28 The Amount Of Cicadas In My Pool Skimmer After One Day

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#29 Well This Is One Way To F*ck Up A Test

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#30 Cursed Cutting Board

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#31 I Don't Know About The Rest Of You But I'm Offended

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#32 Blobfish Are Not Actually That Ugly - Most Photos Are Taken After It Has Been Pulled Out Of The Water And Suffered Tissue Damage. Their Natural Habitat Is At Extremely Low Depths

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#33 Honey Coming Out From Power Socket. Guess What’s Behind It

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#34 Hooded Seals Inflate The Inside Of Their Noses To Impress Females

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#35 Don’t Like Spiders? How About A Zombified Spider Reanimated By A Fungal Infestation?

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#36 No Words Needed

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#37 Yeah.. I Think Face Swap Was A Bad Idea

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#38 Giraffe With A Damaged Vertebrae

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#39 Central American Paper Wasp Nest

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#40 I Have Become The Cat Toy

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#41 Bilk

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#42 My Lil Bros Sneeze With A Mouth Full Of Milk While Using My Laptop

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#43 Imagine Expecting To Bite Into Soft Meat But You Bite A Bolt

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#44 Playing With A Bowling Ball

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#45 My Foot After Wearing A Wet Boot With A Hole In It For 10 Hours

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#46 The Growth Of A Tick In The Span Of Two Weeks

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#47 Sacrificed His Hand In The Name Of Science

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#48 Bubonic Plague

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#49 Fish Skin Can Be Grafted Onto Burns. It Recruits The Body's Own Cells And Is Converted Into Living Tissue Over Time

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#50 A Car I Parked Next To

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#51 Baby In Stomach During Mri

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#52 Cold Snap

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#53 His Face Is The Thing Of Nightmares

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#54 Dude Really Said ‘See No Evil’ And Put His Eyes In Jail

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#55 These Lips Where About To Fall Off

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#56 Just In Case!

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#57 Say Hello To My Little Friend

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#58 Canned Chicken

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#59 Blood Donors

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#60 Moldy Pasta I Found In My Microwave

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#61 Two Of My Wisdom Teeth. They Were Completely Sideways

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