Sex and the Senses
Although BDSM is no longer the subject of taboo and social stigma, it’s still somewhat confusing for beginners and laypeople. It seems like most folks think of it as having weird sex. While that may be one of the main pillars of the culture, in reality, there’s much more to these perversions.
Dominance and submission rely on many things. From whipping to chastity devices, you can find almost anything in the world of BDSM. However, we’re here to talk about something different entirely. We’re here to introduce you to sensation play and all the great things that come along with this particular fetish.
Sense It
Firstly — what is sensation play? Well, it’s all sorts of sexual activities that revolve around your senses. For example, it can be about your skin, your sight, or even your pain tolerance. But in the end, it all comes down to sexual arousal that comes from changing the way your body reacts to different stimuli.
Seeing how it can take on many forms, erotic sensation play can range from tickling someone with light feathers to blindfolding or even tying them up. Of course, all these techniques vary from soft to rough, depending on the participants. Also, during your intimate session, the level of sensation changes. That’s one of the basic concepts of this kind of sexual play.
One of the most common things people do while engaging in sensation play is playing with either hot or cold objects. For example, you can use ice cubes or hot wax to arouse your partner’s body (usually nipples) and further build on that. It’s about starting slow and easy, then gradually stepping up the game.
Furthermore, deprivation is also part of this kink. It means that wearing masks, mittens, and teasing are forms of sensation play too. You know, cock teasing, slowly but surely giving someone what they want. Moreover, you can add impact play to it too. We’re talking whipping, paddling, and other painful things.
The types of sensation play are many. Therefore, there’s no use in naming them all. But from what you’ve read, you’ll surely get the basic idea of what it’s all about. BDSM activities cover numerous grounds. However, the basic idea is always the same — nontraditional arousal and sexual pleasure.
Introducing Sensation Play To Your Partner
Kinky ideas and fetishes always sound cool on paper. But when it comes to introducing them to your bedroom, it’s not that easy. Various things can affect bringing a new idea to an already lasting relationship, such as personal insecurities, partner’s doubts, and so on. Therefore, it’s key that you gradually present something new.
Communication is the essence of every successful and healthy relationship. Sharing ideas and thoughts is as important as anything else. Moreover, when it comes to sex, informing your partner what you want and dream of can only benefit your mutual happiness. So, if you’re looking to get kinky, start talking about it.
In case your partner is willing to give it a try, you shouldn’t go all-out immediately. Sensation play is all about gradually upping the level of action. So, starting with nipple play with ice cubes or wax will be just enough. You can use your regular candles for wax — they’ll do the work just fine.
Once you work out what feels comfortable for the two of you, you can start upping the level of excitement. Introducing role-play, various sex toys, massage oils, etc. The only thing you should keep in mind is safety and sensation play aftercare. Therefore, planning might be a good idea.
The Types of Sensation Play
Like with everything, people love to categorize and put labels on things. Fetishes and kinky play are no strangers to that too. From this to that, you can probably name half a dozen of them in less than a minute. Therefore, we think it’s best to list a couple of different ways people in the BDSM scene see sensation play.
It’s common for people to say there are three main categories of sensation play. The first one is playing with soft objects. It mainly revolves around feathers, tickling, and slowly whispering into someone’s ear all the dirty little things you’d do to them. It’s a great way to start your sensation play career as it’s easy and requires little to no knowledge of how the kink works.
The next one is the deprivation of sight and movement. It means wearing blindfolds, cuffing someone to the bed, and so on. It’s about slowly letting them see or move a bit more. Sensory deprivation works well with soft object play, especially if you cuff someone and start slowly icing their nipples. Then again, it goes great with the next category too.
The third type of sensation play would be enjoying force and harshness. It’s about playing with nipple clamps, whipping, and similar things that cause certain levels of pain. It’s what most people associate with BDSM, but in reality, it’s just one piece of the jigsaw. But with such high-stakes come safety and aftercare too.
Sensation Play Safety and Aftercare
No matter what your idea of sensation play is, you’ll need to take care of safety and the way you and your partner feel afterward. No form of fetish is worthy of hurting each other and endangering your wellbeing. Therefore, it’s important to have in mind what comes during and after your sensation play session.
To make sure everything goes according to plan, you should always talk about your plan in detail beforehand. That way, you’ll both know the aftermath, and you won’t be surprised by anything. Communication is once again the main thing that will help you keep your kinky relationship healthy and harmless. So, keep safety words in mind too.
Furthermore, you should never comply and do anything you don’t feel good about. There’s no room for endangering someone if they’re not into it. Both partners need to show full commitment to the plan for it to work out the way it’s supposed to. No means no.
But the safety process doesn’t end with the final slap of the whip — it’s only halfway there. Aftercare is another essential part of the fetish that will allow you to lead a successful BDSM sex life. Talking after you’re done playing around will help both of you realize what was good and what you should change in the future.
Showing empathy for someone who’s playing the submissive role will help them preserve your true feelings about them. No one should be treated badly if they’re not into it. Therefore, sharing emotions daily is a must if you’re willing to go down this road. Remember, safety always comes first.