BDSM as Trauma Play

In Sexualities,  Jeremy Thomas (2019) reveals some of the his experiences with power exchange in the BDSM community. The author opens with some evidence against the myth that practicing BDSM is the result of childhood trauma and sharing some statistics on the health benefits of this type of play including communication skills, ability to take care of oneself, and decreased psychological distress. Further along trauma play is defined in contrast to cultural trauma play, noting that there can be some overlap, but this article in particular focuses on the author's individual trauma. Furthermore the Thomas highlights that a defining quality of trauma play is that the individual has a personal connection to the scenes they create that they are consciously reconstructing. 

Trauma play is a specific niche in the ocean of BDSM and this article highlights the author's experience with this work while also setting the scene so that he continues to support the work disproving that trauma is somehow always central to all BDSM practitioners' experiences. This type of authoethnographic research is becoming more common as the valuing of the individual's experience becomes more prevalent. As consumers of this person's story, we allow ourselves to relate and be inspired by their lived experiences.

Thomas further delves into the literature around how we can differentiate a therapeutic experience from a re-traumatizing one when it comes to reenactment and play. The biggest factor seems to be the presence of the practitioner. We tend to dissociate during trauma, whereas play in BDSM is about becoming cognizant through purposefully replaying a past experience. Through repetition we can become aware of the associations attached to what has otherwise felt like a chaotic experience and through that awareness we can make choices in how we respond. Hammers (2014) coins the term somatic reclamation in her observation of women using rape play to regain a connection to their bodies and sexuality.

Then the author (Thomas, 2019) shares two scenes which he participates in as a bottom. In the first scene he is bottoming to an older woman he both knows and who is highly experienced with the intention of revisiting a traumatic experience from childhood. In the second, the top is a younger and less experienced woman and he goes into the experience with the intention of having fun. During this second experience he notes that he has the option to revisit this same trauma experience and that it is powerful to recognize it as a choice that can be decided upon. 

Thomas (2019) shares that with the first, more experienced top he had previously had a dysregulating experience bottoming to her and yet decided to continue trying recognizing that just as with any trauma reducing technique there will be risks. The author also notes that he perceives that holding a certain amount of power was necessary for him to be able to connect with the vulnerability that allowed him to bottom with the younger and less experienced woman. Finally, Thomas highlights the intentional decision to bottom to women specifically due to it being relevant to his original trauma.

 


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