Synonyms and related words :
acute, afflictive, agonizing, alarming, atrocious, biting, chilling, consuming, cramping, cruel, daunting, desolating, disconcerting, dismaying, disquieting, distressing, disturbing, excruciating, frightening, gnawing, grave, griping, hard, harsh, heartbreaking, heartrending, heartsickening, heartwounding, horrible, horrifying, hurtful, hurting, nerve-racking, painful, paroxysmal, piercing, poignant, pungent, racking, rending, severe, sharp, shooting, spasmatic, spasmic, spasmodic, stabbing, stinging, tearing, terrifying, tormenting, torturing, torturous, traumatic, upsetting, vexing, worrisome, worrying