Have you ever played the child’s game, Trust Me? Two people play. One stands a few feet behind the other. The person in front falls backward, trusting that the one in back will catch that person before he or she crashes to the floor. It’s a game with an element of danger, the possibility that the person falling might get hurt. There’s also an element of emotional vulnerability. The person falling places enormous trust in the person catching. When the falling player trusts the catcher enough to let go completely, and when the catcher catches, both players experience a moment of exhilaration and intimate emotional connection that’s difficult to duplicate in any other way.

BDSM is similar. The myth is that it’s abusive and weird. Actually it’s all about trust. When trust trumps the possibility of harm, the result can feel incredibly exhilarating and intimate.

In this article:

• A Special Bond
• BDSM Throughout History
• Intense Sensation Without Harm
• “Safe” Words
• The Ultimate Irony: The Sub Is the One in Charge
• Learning the Ropes
• BDSM: A Possible Door into New, Deeper Intimacy

2,400 words MORE…