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I remember reading a passage in one of Robert B. Parker's Spenser books (Saving Rachel Wallace, IIRC). Spenser wants to talk with a young woman who is the partner of a man-hating lesbian, who most decidedly does not want her girlfriend talking to him. She's a karate expert, and suckers him with an unexpected kick to the groin, which he shrugs off and takes her out after a very brief fight--a good big person wins over a good little person every time.
Anyway, he describes the feeling. As Spenser describes it, it hurts, a lot, and it's accompanied by a sick feeling in the lower stomach, which lingers for a long time, but, according to Spenser anyway, and I'm assuming this is Parker actually talking directly to the reader as he is wont to do with Spenser, it isn't physically incapacitating. Someone who's been trained to ignore the pain and discomfort, like a professional fighter, can disregard the pain and sick feeling to continue to fight if necessary, the same way he'd disregard cracked ribs, a broken hand, or even a gunshot wound if necessary .
Being incapacitated is primarily psychological in nature; the testicles are a guy's primary sex organs. An impact there is literally an injury to what makes them physically a man. We don't have any equivilently exposed organs. Our womb and ovaries are safely tucked inside the body wall, and our mammary glands grow extra padding as protection. A man's testicles are exposed with only a little skin to protect them.
I agree though, that this would probably be a good question to ask the guys, as anything. Anyone have a brother or husband they could ask?
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