Post Bondage Emotions

Chicklet

plays well with self
Joined
Apr 8, 2002
Posts
12,302
A few months ago I did a dangerous thing. I met someone on Collarme.com, chatted for a while, and then let him tie me up that night. Clothes on, no 'sexual' contact (besides the fact that I think the whole thing WAS sexual), a little bit of spanking, a lot of fun. But this post isn't about that.

After that experience, we didn't talk for a month, but then we started talking again and have become pretty good friends. We hang out with my other friends about twice a week. We tease each other about bondage related things, and have fun kinky conversations, with each other and with my friends. He's awsome.

There're two problems. One, I am not really attracted to him. Two, he's not really attracted to me. But we aren't getting our kinks from anyone else, and this last week crossed the standard friendship line again and did a couple more scenes.

Sunday night we played around with some gigantic zip-ties and duct tape (duct tape is now on my Hard Limits list, thank you...I burn myself too often and having the healing skin ripped off by tape was a little much for me and my wounds.) Last night, after some negotiations online, we played around again, for a longer period of time.

Okay, here's the point of the thread.

The bondage was fun. The humiliation was fun. Having someone I trust, even though I'm not emotionally attached romantically to him, playing with me and toying with me and teasing me was great. But then when he let me go, at the end of the night, I found myself shaky, and really distraught.

I don't know what it was about it... I think it was the first time I'd been so helpless around someone that I didn't want to comfort me afterwards. With my previous Dom, I loved to cling and cuddle and have gentle sex after the more serious play. I liked to be held in his arms and reassured that even though he'd embarrassed me more than I'd thought was possible, he still wanted me and (maybe not loved me, but at least seemed to...) maybe, that he still cherished me. I think that it was an essential part of the play scene... the holding at the end.

Instead, last night, I found myself huddling in the corner of the couch, seriously hiding under the blanket and staring intently at the TV, but not able to smile or laugh at the comedy or even answer my friend in complete sentences when he asked me questions. I think my distancing myself from the reality of the post-bondage made him uncomfortable, and unable to bring me back into reality with his friendship.

I had FUN last night. I really enjoyed myself. I had a heavy-duty masturbation session when I got home (drove after the shaking stopped) and I want to do it again. But for that hour after being untied, I think I was further away from myself than I'd been as long as I can remember.

Does anyone have any thoughts or advice or similar experiences to share?
 
To me that sounds like having sex with someone that you are not really attracted to. It's good because you *need* it at the time, but something is missing and somehow it makes one feel pretty lonely--
Is that it?

Bredon
 
@}-}rebecca---- said:
Aftercare Chicklet ?


probably - how could I ask him for aftercare, though? it's so intimate, and frankly the experience didn't feel very intimate.

Actually I've never really asked ANYBODY for aftercare... it's just always happened. Blah. I want to feel okay with this, I'd like to do it again, but I don't want to feel so empty afterwards.

bredon said:
To me that sounds like having sex with someone that you are not really attracted to. It's good because you *need* it at the time, but something is missing and somehow it makes one feel pretty lonely--
Is that it?

Honestly I've never HAD sex with someone I wasn't really attracted to... I have had sex with so few people in my life... although, that's how I described it to a vanilla friend last night when I got home and was still extremely distressed about it.
 
"empty"-- that's the right word for how I feel when I have intense sex with someone I'm not attracted to.
That's why I generally avoid it though I have no moral problem with it. I don't have to love the person, a normal sexual attraction is enough. Don't ask me why! :rolleyes:

Bredon
 
Maybe a subconscious wish things were different between you? I don't mean you are attracted to him, but more so given how well you play together, a sort of bittersweet feeling of disappointment it is not more.

Catalina :catroar:
 
Chicklet said:
probably - how could I ask him for aftercare, though? it's so intimate, and frankly the experience didn't feel very intimate.

Actually I've never really asked ANYBODY for aftercare... it's just always happened. Blah. I want to feel okay with this, I'd like to do it again, but I don't want to feel so empty afterwards.
Chicklet I don't think aftercare has be either elaborate or particularly intimate in this relationship . Honestly depends on what works for you. Pointless me making a ton of suggestions they will most likely be redundant.

I have only experienced something similar once and I also like you made a choice to participate, when the entire 'equation' was lacking fundamentals that are important to me before I am at ease with that degree of submission .

I outright rejected my partner after the fact and was extremely conflicted. Fortunately he valued me and when was truly aware at how distraught I had become in hindsight , he gave me the time and reassurance I needed until I felt grounded again.

It can be very tempting at some level to 'go there' again but it might be wiser to desist until you can find a workable head space around this altered situation. Maybe in fact the whole disorientation though uncomfortable/disturbing etc is something you are actually wanting ?

If not then you need some conversation and ground rules that extend past the scene before you consent again.

I really do think however Chicklet , if your partner is able to go through the motions of scening with you he should have the responsibility of checking your okay after the fact. Only you can articulate what to him what those particular needs may be. A little common sense on his part won't go astray but if you know that your going to reject all attempts by him outright then you have a bit to think about.
 
I talk about my relationships with my friends a lot. Because my Master can't play with me in person, he allows me to play with my friends, something that was done before i met him anyway. A little bit different for me is that there has always been a certian amount of physical attraction with my friends, where as you say there is none with you, but there is no romatic inclinations. I need the cuddle after a really hard session as well, and tho I've not verbally asked for it, I have sort of snuggled into one of my more stand offish friends when I needed it, and then he held me until I calmed down. I'm a huge cuddler anyway, so I've always spent a lot of time snuggling with my friends so it doesn't seem that unusual for me to do so after a session. I'd really sugest talking to him about this, maybe a cuddle and a movie afterwords would help you come down. Aftercare doesn't have to be an intimate thing exclusively. Sort of like the difference between hugging your guy and hugging your grandmom.
 
One of the things about me is I don't feel physically comfortable with most people. At all times in my life there's only been one person I feel like I can get close to physically, even to the point of touching or holding hands. My mother, when I was a child (and I wasn't comfortable with any other relative touching me) and then boyfriend after boyfriend. Right now, I'm scared because I don't feel like I can comfortably touch ANYONE. I don't know if having this friend hold me or hug me or pet me would even have made me comfortable... it might have made me more distant, because it scares me so much to have people touch me.

I'm feeling like there's something horribly wrong with me mentally right now. I never really think of my masochism or my longing to be bound as something psychological, but right now, with all these other emotions swimming around, I'm having a lot of self doubt about my submissiveness. Maybe right now I'm looking to be abused, and to make myself feel more distant to aid my idea of my own depression and victimization.

Bah. It's so confusing. And I hate to think that I should stop playing with my friend because I can't get my head on straight.

I always want to be bound, hurt, humiliated, etc... is it possible that it's healthy most of the time, but I'm twisting it into something unhealthy at this time in my life? Or does this give evidence of my mental instability, period?
 
If you felt only confortable being touched by your mother or later your boyfriends, then getting touched by that play friend was "against your inner rules"? I often find that when I step over my own inner boundaries, I feel weird like you describe it.

Bredon
 
Chicklet said:
One of the things about me is I don't feel physically comfortable with most people. At all times in my life there's only been one person I feel like I can get close to physically, even to the point of touching or holding hands. My mother, when I was a child (and I wasn't comfortable with any other relative touching me) and then boyfriend after boyfriend. Right now, I'm scared because I don't feel like I can comfortably touch ANYONE. I don't know if having this friend hold me or hug me or pet me would even have made me comfortable... it might have made me more distant, because it scares me so much to have people touch me.
Hmmmn ... your comments are very interesting from a selfish perspective on my part Chicklet. This thread is about you but I really need to comment that you and I share a commonality in the revulsion ( you used the word uncomfortable ) to be touched. Children can jump all over me and I am fine within a relationship otherwise I can't stand anyone to touch me. ( only exception being spa treatments and then I gear up for it to the point I can relax ). I pull back from anyone hugging me and have had to train myself to fake a good hand shake for business and social reasons. I am a 'master' at the 'air kiss'.........heh.

Ohhh and I was not abused as a child physically so lets not go there.

Chicklet said:
I'm feeling like there's something horribly wrong with me mentally right now. I never really think of my masochism or my longing to be bound as something psychological, but right now, with all these other emotions swimming around, I'm having a lot of self doubt about my submissiveness. Maybe right now I'm looking to be abused, and to make myself feel more distant to aid my idea of my own depression and victimization.

Bah. It's so confusing. And I hate to think that I should stop playing with my friend because I can't get my head on straight.

I always want to be bound, hurt, humiliated, etc... is it possible that it's healthy most of the time, but I'm twisting it into something unhealthy at this time in my life? Or does this give evidence of my mental instability, period?
You sound lucid to me . I don't think your at risk of losing 'it'. However all this self reflection sounds healthy to some degree for the reason of the following comment you made ............

Chicklet said:
A few months ago I did a dangerous thing. I met someone on Collarme.com, chatted for a while, and then let him tie me up that night.

Are we seeing a bit of a red flag in the statement above perhaps........... :rose:
 
Chicklet said:
One of the things about me is I don't feel physically comfortable with most people. At all times in my life there's only been one person I feel like I can get close to physically, even to the point of touching or holding hands. My mother, when I was a child (and I wasn't comfortable with any other relative touching me) and then boyfriend after boyfriend. Right now, I'm scared because I don't feel like I can comfortably touch ANYONE. I don't know if having this friend hold me or hug me or pet me would even have made me comfortable... it might have made me more distant, because it scares me so much to have people touch me.

I'm feeling like there's something horribly wrong with me mentally right now. I never really think of my masochism or my longing to be bound as something psychological, but right now, with all these other emotions swimming around, I'm having a lot of self doubt about my submissiveness. Maybe right now I'm looking to be abused, and to make myself feel more distant to aid my idea of my own depression and victimization.

Bah. It's so confusing. And I hate to think that I should stop playing with my friend because I can't get my head on straight.

I always want to be bound, hurt, humiliated, etc... is it possible that it's healthy most of the time, but I'm twisting it into something unhealthy at this time in my life? Or does this give evidence of my mental instability, period?

I realize that some people are not touchie feelie type people, and because I am it's hard for me to understand why others may not be. I know exactly why I am, and it has a lot to do with my parents devorce. I tend to cling onto people now. It's something I recognize and I warn people about. I'm extreamly cuddly and I beg for attention constantly. Some people will nurture that need for attention in me, and some don't, either way I've learned how to intereact with them.

I don't think that this is something that is always unhealthy, but perhaps there is an issue here that you are not recognizing and it's making you question something that you normally enjoy. I've noticed that there are times when i'm dealing with issues totally unrelated I question my exibitionist nature and why I do things like post pics and such. Normally it's something that I enjoy and makes me feel good, but if I'm feeling lonely or stressed or something like that I start to question my motives and go into a whole rutean that I've done a million times before and is always debunked. Maybe the key is figuring out these issues and dealing with them before you start questioning too much your interst in bondage.

but that's just my thought. :)
 
insertcutename said:
*STUPID QUESTION WITH A PROBABLY VERY OBVIOUS ANSWER ALERT*

What is this "aftercare" of which you speak?

"aftercare" is typically care given to the submissive after a scene to make sure he or she is alright and back in the right headspace.
 
insertcutename said:
*STUPID QUESTION WITH A PROBABLY VERY OBVIOUS ANSWER ALERT*

What is this "aftercare" of which you speak?
It's making sure your partner is doing alright after a scene, physically and emotionally. For example tending wounds, getting them a drink, snack, blanket, cuddling them. There is much difference as to what people in a relationship want and need. It can go both ways (the pyl getting the PYL water after a 'flogging work-out'). It doesn't have to happen. Depends.

*PYL=pick your label; capital for Top, Dom etc, small for bottom, sub etc.
 
I actually understand what you're talking about to a degree and I've had this happen with people I've bottomed to. Mutual sexual lust was rarely part of my relationship with my tops with one or two exceptions. In my case, I just find that bottoming can bring up some profound shit. It really had *nothing* to do with the other person at all and everything to do with me. You don't always know how things are going to go, "aftercare" sometimes feels smothering and icky from the wrong person or even the right person at the wrong time.

But that said, I don't think that everything that bubbles up has to be given a lot of credence or analyzed that much. It may be a small voice that has nasty things to say to you, but it's not really always that astute or that useful to fixate on it.

As for whether your move was "dangerous" or not, well textbook wise yes. You did a very dangerous thing. Bah. Whatever. Obviously you felt OK about this person and you felt like he was going to respect your boundaries and it sounds like he does, don't beat yourself up for making an OK snap decision. I've depended on quickly reading and interpreting the vibes I get from people and deciding if I'm going to play with them or show them the door, and I've not had any major problems, knock wood. I wouldn't say that there was no calculated risk involved, but it's the operative word, "calculated."


I'd chalk it up to "momma said there'd be days like this" unless it keeps bubbling up. For me it did, and eventually pointed out to me that, duh, bottoming a lot isn't where it's at for me. But I don't think that necessarily where you're headed. Just be nice to you, and talk to your friend. Maybe he's got some insight and talking it over will at least help him not blame himself over it.
 
Last edited:
Chicklet said:
A few months ago I did a dangerous thing. I met someone on Collarme.com, chatted for a while, and then let him tie me up that night. Clothes on, no 'sexual' contact (besides the fact that I think the whole thing WAS sexual), a little bit of spanking, a lot of fun. But this post isn't about that.

After that experience, we didn't talk for a month, but then we started talking again and have become pretty good friends. We hang out with my other friends about twice a week. We tease each other about bondage related things, and have fun kinky conversations, with each other and with my friends. He's awsome.

There're two problems. One, I am not really attracted to him. Two, he's not really attracted to me. But we aren't getting our kinks from anyone else, and this last week crossed the standard friendship line again and did a couple more scenes.

Sunday night we played around with some gigantic zip-ties and duct tape (duct tape is now on my Hard Limits list, thank you...I burn myself too often and having the healing skin ripped off by tape was a little much for me and my wounds.) Last night, after some negotiations online, we played around again, for a longer period of time.

Okay, here's the point of the thread.

The bondage was fun. The humiliation was fun. Having someone I trust, even though I'm not emotionally attached romantically to him, playing with me and toying with me and teasing me was great. But then when he let me go, at the end of the night, I found myself shaky, and really distraught.

I don't know what it was about it... I think it was the first time I'd been so helpless around someone that I didn't want to comfort me afterwards. With my previous Dom, I loved to cling and cuddle and have gentle sex after the more serious play. I liked to be held in his arms and reassured that even though he'd embarrassed me more than I'd thought was possible, he still wanted me and (maybe not loved me, but at least seemed to...) maybe, that he still cherished me. I think that it was an essential part of the play scene... the holding at the end.

Instead, last night, I found myself huddling in the corner of the couch, seriously hiding under the blanket and staring intently at the TV, but not able to smile or laugh at the comedy or even answer my friend in complete sentences when he asked me questions. I think my distancing myself from the reality of the post-bondage made him uncomfortable, and unable to bring me back into reality with his friendship.

I had FUN last night. I really enjoyed myself. I had a heavy-duty masturbation session when I got home (drove after the shaking stopped) and I want to do it again. But for that hour after being untied, I think I was further away from myself than I'd been as long as I can remember.

Does anyone have any thoughts or advice or similar experiences to share?


Hi ~ I believe you "Dropped". The after affects of the endorphins that were flooding your system wearing off.

It can happen after any activity that causes them.

Here is a link to another post that may help.

Dropping
 
Chicklet said:
... But then when he let me go, at the end of the night, I found myself shaky, and really distraught.

I don't know what it was about it... I think it was the first time I'd been so helpless around someone that I didn't want to comfort me afterwards...

Instead, last night, I found myself huddling in the corner of the couch, seriously hiding under the blanket and staring intently at the TV, but not able to smile or laugh at the comedy or even answer my friend in complete sentences when he asked me questions. I think my distancing myself from the reality of the post-bondage made him uncomfortable, and unable to bring me back into reality with his friendship.

... Does anyone have any thoughts or advice or similar experiences to share?

Like Kayte said... sounds like classic "sub drop" symptoms to me. This is NOT unusual or strange at all. It can happen once in a blue moon, it might happen every time you play. I had a friend that I did a scene co-topping her with her Dom and she was in la-la land for a couple of hours after the scene, loopy, happy, cuddly, and just off in her own happy head space from the endorphin rush. And then she crashed hard. Very emotional, very shakey physically, withdrawn...

You are not losing your mind Chicklet. Cops, soldiers, runners, many others experience similar "drops" when coming off of adrenaline surges. There are lots of causes. For instance, I'm diabetic, and if I get the post-scene shakes or start getting loopy, I need carbs because that's also an indication my blood sugar is dropping dangerously low...

Be honest with your play partner, let him know you enjoyed the bee-jeebers out of the scene, but you dropped afterwards as your body adjusted to the endorphins/adrenaline/sugar changes you just went through. Be good to yourself, be good to him, and continue to enjoy your sessions.

{{{{{HUG}}}}}
- Geoff
 
Thank you everybody. It looks so meaningless to type it out, but you've all really helped me. I'm going to talk about all this stuff with my friend before we talk about doing this again. And I'd like to try it again, even if it means I might go through this little emotional fit again... at least to see if it DOES happen. If it happens the second time, I don't think I'd go through with it again. But maybe it was a fluke.

Seriously, thank you. :rose:
 
I had that feeling with vanilla relationships myself. They weren't really relationships though, more so one nighters but even then you should usually be ok if you know that you are doing something for just the night. The last few times I did them before I started actually dating again I felt really rejected and used, very unhappy. Sometimes the only thing you can do is stop what is causing the feeling and take a little time before going back into that situation.

I hope this helped a little bit.
Cherry
 
Yanno, if you're not comfortable with partner-provided aftercare, maybe you could plan ahead and do your own, private aftercare? I mean, since you were huddled in front of the TV and couldn't drag yourself back to a normal range of emotions, maybe you could plan to be nowhere near your TV after a scene. Like maybe schedule a drink with one of your girlfriends, just to have something fun and familiar to occupy your brain and your body in the time after a potentially scary scene.
 
Quint-- that's very interesting. It almost sounds like what poeple describe who are doing trance stuff-- or those religious experiences where you use pain-- like walking fire, or flagellation. It's like you partially left your body and have to find your way back. Reminds me of shamanistic experiences too.
(being a dom I only can guess how that feels though). Shamans often get hired to return a soul part to the body when it got lost somewhere-- people react to that loss with confusion and depression. This loss can happen from shocks or accidents or illnesses (pain?).

Bredon
 
NemoAlia said:
Yanno, if you're not comfortable with partner-provided aftercare, maybe you could plan ahead and do your own, private aftercare? I mean, since you were huddled in front of the TV and couldn't drag yourself back to a normal range of emotions, maybe you could plan to be nowhere near your TV after a scene. Like maybe schedule a drink with one of your girlfriends, just to have something fun and familiar to occupy your brain and your body in the time after a potentially scary scene.

honestly i wouldn't have been able to drive after our play if i'd wanted to. if i'd tried, i probably woulda killed myself... that is if i could have found my car in the state i was in.

the suggestion is a good one, but i honestly can't think of anything that would have calmed me down by myself.
 
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