It’s hard to overemphasize the importance of not leaving a bound person unattended. Should you ever be tempted to do so, I’d suggest you keep in mind the story of the Montreal guy who popped out for groceries while his submissive was tied up by her collar. While he was figuring out what to have for dinner, she died of asphyxiation. He tried to claim it was an accident but, quite rightly in my view, was found guilty of criminal negligence.
While I’m all for maximizing safety, I found part of the first linked article a little surprising.
…put safety first, which means buying the right equipment that has release devices allowing subs to free themselves from bondage and similar confinement situations. In other words, subs must always be able to effortlessly free themselves because, for example, a domme/dom could be standing two feet away and suffer a heart attack or something.
I’ve been on the receiving end of a lot of bondage and I can’t think of anytime I’ve been in quick release devices. I get the need when you’re playing with someone you’re not too familiar with, but for normal play in an established relationship? Being able to effortless free myself would seem to miss the point somewhat.
It’s true that a heart attack for the domme would present a problem for me. But so would a heart attack for the guy doing 70 mph on the freeway behind me tomorrow morning. Or come to that, a heart attack all of my own. Or getting randomly shot in a bar. Or deliberately shot in a bar for that matter. Not every American takes kindly to my drunken theories on the innate superiority of British music and comedy. Life is full of risks.
Only using quick release cuffs would also seem to rule out rope bondage. That would be a great shame as it can be very beautiful.
Both of these images are from the bondage is not a crime tumblr. You can see a couple of other shots from the same sequences here and here.
Hi paltego,
Basic safety certainly makes sense but, as you point out, there’s risk in everything we do.
Best,
scott
Mrs. Kelly’s Playhouse
I suppose anything can happen during bdsm play and I tend to agree with you and Scott here. I’m also not into real heavy bondage anyway, so it’s not something I’ve given a great deal of thought to.
Wasn’t there a Stephen Kink novel based upon just such a scene? The Dom/me has a heart attack and the sub is bound to the bed in a secluded area?
Suzanne
Hi, folks,
Thanks for looking at my blog post on the Gazette site. The release clips I’m talking about are great for bondage situations, usually attached to cuffs. I’ve used them both as a sub and a domme (I started as a sub, but doms soon thought I should be a domme, too.). I learned about all this from a very experienced dom who insisted that I be able to free myself if something happened to him. As it turned out, something did happen, and I had to free myself one day.
Anyway, feel free to send comments — whether you agree or not — to my blog and I will post them there. I’m adding the email address on the end of the post there.
Also, here is a link to a site that sells the clips:
http://www.bdsmgear.com/hardware.htm
Cheers
Jillian
P.S. I should add that the ropes I’m talking about have double-ended release clips already attached to them, so the sub can simply unclip them at the wrists and ankles in emergency situations.
Cheers