BDSM is a compound acronym that encompasses the terms for Bondage and Discipline, Dominance and Submission, and Sadism and Masochism. Humiliation is inherent in BDSM play, which is a form of role-play between two or more adults. Participants assume roles of power or dominance and subservience or submission.
BDSM practices typically involve restraining the submissive while the Dominant inflicts varying levels of physical and psychological pain and humiliation upon the submissive, a practice that brings pleasure to both parties involved.
B/D, or Bondage and Discipline, refers to the practice of restraining. Bondage is the practice of physical restraint and discipline as opposed to the practice of psychological restraint. As with nearly all BDSM play, both bondage and discipline are forms of erotic humiliation. For example, the sub loses physical freedom when the Dom binds the sub’s arms and legs together, places the sub in spreader bars, or ties the sub naked to a St. Andrew’s Cross. The Dom restricts social freedom by requiring certain types of behavior. For instance, having to ask permission to do certain things, or being forbidden to do others.
Dominance and Submission, or D/s, refers to the consensual giving or accepting control from one individual to another in an erotic context, whereby the submissive places themselves under the control of the Dominant.
Generally, Dominance and Submission focuses heavily on the psychological aspects of BDSM. Both participants consider the physical aspects in light of the psychological effect. The Dominant may require the submissive to beg for the privilege to do humiliating things, order the submissive to do humiliating things, or say humiliating things to the submissive.
By its very nature, D/s is a form of erotic humiliation, though there are those who take it even further than erotic humiliation and cross over into degradation, a form of edge play, which is not for everyone. It is important to discuss desires, triggers, and emotions with each other before entering into this type of scene, so both parties involved are on the same page.
Sadomasochism refers to the physical aspects of BDSM, deriving sexual pleasure from inflicting or receiving physical pain, humiliation, and degradation. Sadism refers to those who derive sexual pleasure from infliction and masochism refers to those who derive sexual please from being on the receiving end.
Though there are certainly psychological aspects involved in sadomasochism, those are secondary to the pain being inflicted. Common sadomasochistic behaviors are sensory deprivation, spanking, binding, and other types of suffering agreed upon between the two parties.
There is generally some pain inflicted on a physical level when it comes to practicing various forms of BDSM. The crux of BDSM is about power exchange, humiliation, and pleasure. In bondage and discipline and in dominance and submission, physical pain may not occur at all, as it is mostly about the emotions and psychological changes that occur during the power exchange and humiliation.
In these practices, it is about the desired mental state achieved during BDSM play, known as subspace. Subspace occurs when erotic humiliation occurs. The body releases endorphins, resulting from that BDSM play, that creates a trance-like mental state. We call this the ultimate erotic high.
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