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Bdsm Concepts – Basics
BDSM is a set of patterns in (sexual) behavior that involves such notions as Bondage, Discipline/Domination, Submission/Sadism and Masochism. While these bdsm concepts may imply pain, humiliation or servitude, they could be regarded abusive and wrong in neutral social context. However, when performed by consent, as a part of sexual play, for example, these activities are meant to bring pleasure to the persons participating. There are no restrictions as for the sexual orientation of bdsm practitioners, bdsm concepts include gay bdsm, lesbian bdsm, bisexual and polyamorous partners, etc.
In earlier years bdsm practice used to be illegal and was considered a pathology; yet today the situation has changed in many civilized countries and there is no more reason to hide from the law for those who follow the main bdsm credo: being Safe, Sane and Consensual.
So let us now discuss basic bdsm concepts.
To start with, all bdsm plays include such bdsm concepts as submission and domination. These bdsm concepts are present in every bdsm activity: where there is power, there is always subordination, and partners divide the roles of a master and a slave depending on situation, personal preferences or as a result of negotiation. The dominant (dom)
enjoys the feeling of control, ownership and omnipotence aroused when s/he is granted absolute power over the submissive person. On the other hand, the sub desires to be controlled, given orders or even punished for disobedience. Hence follow the next related bdsm concepts, sadism and masochism. Sadists are those who take pleasure in hurting the
partner, inflicting pain on him/her, whereas masochists conscientiously seek for suffering. Thus, both partners derive sensual pleasure from this kind of bdsm concepts combination in relationship and it actually becomes questionable who really holds the power.
Two more important bdsm concepts include top and bottom partners. The top is actually the giver, that is, s/he will be spanking, binding, flogging, pinching, applying various bdsm toys upon the bottom or otherwise humiliating/serving him/her. At that, it should be noted that being dominant is also possible from the position of the bottom, and on the contrary, topping may be performed by the submissive person on command. Some other synonymous bdsm concepts are the “pitcher” and “catcher”, the meaning of which can be easily interpreted. Assuming the above roles can last only for one scene, within the framework of certain relationship or as a life-style, 24/7. Roles chosen in sexual context are often opposed to those performed by the person in real life.
Enumerating bdsm concepts wouldn’t be complete without mentioning such notion as switching, that is changing either physical (top/bottom) or emotional (dom/sub) roles during a particular session or situation; some other significant bdsm concepts as bdsm safety issues and extreme bdsm practices are revealed in more detail in the respective articles that you can read on link-clicking.
Bdsm Safety Issues
As common bdsm practices can imply actions that bring pain, restrict movement, etc. and thus are potentially dangerous for the people engaged, observing bdsm safety rules is an important precondition of any bdsm interaction.
Bdsm can bring immense satisfaction as well as deep distress, so before actually practicing it the following bdsm safety
principles should be considered.
Based upon the main bdsm credo, all bdsm activities are to be Safe, Sane and Consensual. This trinity is reflected in bdsm artwork and the bdsm safety issues that are interconnected and indispensable.
The first bdsm safety concept is common sense. It means that whatever fantasy may be lived out, bdsm safety is above all. Bondage, physical torture or servitude play should not endanger life of partners, so, actions that can result in permanent injury or other health problems like disease-transmission must be avoided (when playing do not hit
the head, the back of the neck, temples or apply self-bondage). It is also strongly advised that bdsm, especially extreme bdsm be practiced in trusted relationship only.
To define bdsm safety limits it is important to stick to the next bdsm safety rule, namely, negotiation. Desires, needs, taboos discussed all help to better understand the partner and ensure greater satisfaction. Here, agreeing upon certain bdsm safety terminology is absolutely essential. Bdsm safety words are used when the situation becomes unacceptable for any of the partners in terms of mental or physical discomfort, and immediately stop the action. Bdsm safety words should be known to all of the bdsm scene participants and easily recognizable. In case it is for some reason impossible to speak during the bdsm session (submissive’s mouth is gagged, etc.), non-verbal signals are adopted. Common bdsm safety words are based on color separation: in multiple-level bdsm safety vocabulary green may call for increase in stimulus intensity, yellow would ask the pitcher (see bdsm concepts) to pause or not to go further, and red is the common sign for aborting the play.
Next bdsm safety concept requires sharing responsibility among participants, no matter what roles are performed by whom, and this is the responsibility both towards oneself and the partner.
To ensure bdsm safety it is also necessary to disinfect bdsm toys that contact with body fluids before applying them to a different person as they can transfer infectious diseases, including HIV, Hepatitis B, etc.
Finally, the last, but not the least important bdsm safety concept concerns freedom of choice. The term RACK (Risk-Aware Consensual Risk) emphasizes that going into bdsm should only be done with full understanding of the consequences.