pile on the agony [British & Australian, informal]to try to get sympathy from other people by making your problems seem worse than they really are. He was really piling on the agony, saying he was heart-broken and hadn't got anything left to live for.
 He was really piling on the agony, saying he was heart-broken and hadn't got anything left to live for. (usually in continuous tenses) 
 [TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲