Self-bondage refers to the use of restraints on oneself for sexual pleasure. It is a form of sexual bondage

Bondage (BDSM)

Bondage is the use of restraints for the sexual pleasure of the parties involved. It may be used in its own right, as in the case of rope bondage and breast bondage, or as part of sexual activity or BDSM activity.- Private bondage :...

 which can be practiced alone.

Self-bondage is characterized by experimentation and ingenuity, and can be risk

Risk

Risk is the potential that a chosen action or activity will lead to a loss . The notion implies that a choice having an influence on the outcome exists . Potential losses themselves may also be called "risks"...

ier than conventional bondage. Self-bondage requires use of techniques for self-binding as movement becomes increasingly restricted as more restraints are applied, and also requires a reliable release mechanism. Many types of bondage equipment can be applied before the one that restrains the hands. For example, leg irons can be applied, as well as gag

Gag

A gag is usually a device designed to prevent speech, often as a restraint device to stop the subject from calling for help. This is usually done by blocking the mouth, partially or completely, or attempting to prevent the tongue, lips, or jaw from moving in the normal patterns of speech. They are...

s, blindfold

Blindfold

A blindfold is a garment, usually of cloth, tied to one's head to cover the eyes to disable the wearer's sight. It can be worn when the eyes are in a closed state and thus prevents the wearer from opening them...

s, etc.

For many of its practitioners, the added challenges and dangers are a part of the appeal of self-bondage, who often devise elaborate self-bondage schemes and release mechanisms, both in practice and in erotic fiction

Erotic literature

Erotic literature comprises fictional and factual stories and accounts of human sexual relationships which have the power to or are intended to arouse the reader sexually. Such erotica takes the form of novels, short stories, poetry, true-life memoirs, and sex manuals...

.

Risks of self-bondage

Self-bondage is considered a higher-risk activity than many other BDSM

BDSM

BDSM is an erotic preference and a form of sexual expression involving the consensual use of restraint, intense sensory stimulation, and fantasy power role-play. The compound acronym BDSM is derived from the terms bondage and discipline , dominance and submission , and sadism and masochism...

 practices — particularly when combined with autoerotic asphyxia — and has led to many recorded deaths. The death in 1994 of Stephen Milligan

Stephen Milligan

Stephen David Wyatt Milligan was a British Conservative politician and journalist. He held a number of senior journalistic posts until his election to serve as Member of Parliament for Eastleigh in 1992...

, the British Conservative MP for Eastleigh

Eastleigh

Eastleigh is a railway town in Hampshire, England, and the main town in the Eastleigh borough which is part of Southampton Urban Area. The town lies between Southampton and Winchester, and is part of the South Hampshire conurbation...

, was a case of autoerotic asphyxiation combined with self-bondage.

Self-bondage has all the risks of physical restraint

Physical restraint

Physical restraint refers to the practice of rendering people harmless, helpless or keeping them in captivity by means such as handcuffs, fetters, straitjackets, ropes, straps, or other forms of physical restraint...

 and sexual bondage, with the added factor that should anything go wrong, there is no-one to effect a rescue. For example, if blood circulation cuts off sensation in limbs, the planned escape mechanism may not be usable.

Types of self-bondage

Self-bondage can be either strict or sensual.

Sensual self-bondage

In sensual self-bondage, escape from restraints is simple and available immediately, if desired. For example, the keys

Key (lock)

A key is an instrument that is used to operate a lock. A typical key consists of two parts: the blade, which slides into the keyway of the lock and distinguishes between different keys, and the bow, which is left protruding so that torque can be applied by the user. The blade is usually intended to...

 might be within reach or the knot

Knot

A knot is a method of fastening or securing linear material such as rope by tying or interweaving. It may consist of a length of one or several segments of rope, string, webbing, twine, strap, or even chain interwoven such that the line can bind to itself or to some other object—the "load"...

s loosely tied. The chief aim is the sensation of immobility and of constrained movement.

Strict self-bondage

Strict self-bondage requires that the means of escape be unavailable until the lapse of time before the release mechanism activates itself. This feature of strict self-bondage makes it potentially more hazardous, but some practice it for the greater sense of helplessness it creates.

Emergency intervention

A compromise position between safety and strictness allows for a backup release mechanism that is available immediately, but carries with it some penalty or cost with its use. For example, keys could be placed in a bucket of paint. The person in self-bondage can escape quickly if necessary, such as a fire breaking out, or excessive numbness of limbs. However, the annoyance of cleaning up the paint afterwords would coerce the person into waiting for the main release mechanism to come into effect if he or she were merely bored or uncomfortable. Another penalty may be the need to contact somebody, with the penalty being having to explain what has happened.

Release mechanisms

Many release mechanisms are used in self-bondage to allow the practitioner to escape the restraints after a period of time. There are various trade-offs to be made between ease of use, reliability, precision of timing, cost, and so forth. There should be several mechanisms available, thus ensuring redundancy and safety.

• Ice cubes are commonly used as a release mechanism. For example, a key can be placed in water which is then frozen. The key will not be available until the ice melts. Advantages include simplicity and reliability. The disadvantage is that it can be difficult to gauge precisely how long a scenario will last, although some enjoy the uncertainty.

• Ice locks are frozen together and do not move until the ice has melted down. These can be used alone (to lock a person to a stationary object) or in combination with tightening devices (to keep the tension for a certain period of time).

• "Salt locks": Salt, sugar or any other safe water soluble substance blocks parts of a lock. It needs to be dissolved in order to release the mechanism.

• Combination lock
  Combination lock
  A combination lock is a type of lock in which a sequence of numbers or symbols is used to open the lock. The sequence may be entered using a single rotating dial which interacts with several discs or cams, by using a set of several rotating discs with inscribed numerals which directly interact with...
  
  s can be used as release mechanisms. These can rely on the time needed to try every possibility for an unknown combination, or they can rely on light in order to see to enter the known combination correctly.
  • Unknown combination: The idea is that the lock is reset to an unknown combination, then used to lock the bondage in place. The person must find the correct combination by trial and error. A three digit combination lock contains a thousand possibilities. At a second per attempt, this would take approximately 15 minutes. For a four-digit lock, it is nearer two hours. Disadvantages include the fact that it may be distracting to actively "crack" the lock.
  • In darkness: Even if the number is known, for many locks, it is not possible to enter the combination without being able to see the faces of the dials. This release mechanism relies on darkness. The light can be provided either by the morning sunlight
    Sunlight
    Sunlight, in the broad sense, is the total frequency spectrum of electromagnetic radiation given off by the Sun. On Earth, sunlight is filtered through the Earth's atmosphere, and solar radiation is obvious as daylight when the Sun is above the horizon.When the direct solar radiation is not blocked...
    
    , or, preferably, through a light on a time switch
    Time switch
    A time switch is a timer that plugs into an electric socket, between the socket itself and a power plug. This physical arrangement allows the connected device to automatically receive power for a desired duration of time...
    
    . The advantages include a large amount of control over how long the bondage lasts (with a timer
    Timer
    A timer is a specialized type of clock. A timer can be used to control the sequence of an event or process. Whereas a stopwatch counts upwards from zero for measuring elapsed time, a timer counts down from a specified time interval, like an hourglass.Timers can be mechanical, electromechanical,...
    
    ), and a backup of the onset of daylight. The disadvantages are only being able to use the technique at night, and having to perform the bondage in the dark.

• Electromagnet
  Electromagnet
  An electromagnet is a type of magnet in which the magnetic field is produced by the flow of electric current. The magnetic field disappears when the current is turned off...
  
  s: Electromagnets can be used to release keys after a delay. If combined with electronics or a computer, a large amount of control is possible over the timing, and the mechanism is somewhat "fail-safe
  Fail-safe
  A fail-safe or fail-secure device is one that, in the event of failure, responds in a way that will cause no harm, or at least a minimum of harm, to other devices or danger to personnel....
  
  " — if power fails, the key will fall early. Disadvantages include complexity and cost. The powerful electromagnets used in door locks can also be adapted for use directly as restraints.

• Soldering iron
  Soldering iron
  A soldering iron is a hand tool most commonly used in soldering. It supplies heat to melt the solder so that it can flow into the joint between two workpieces.A soldering iron is composed of a heated metal tip and an insulated handle...
  
  s: Soldering irons can be used, in conjunction with a timing mechanism, to cut a nylon rope, or to release keys. This may be a fire hazard unless appropriate precautions are taken.

• The use of a delivery/messenger service or regular mail in order to obtain the object (usually key/keys) needed in order to become released. This relies on the delivery service being 100% efficient.

Emergency backup

There are also a number of release mechanisms designed to be emergency backups. The idea behind these release mechanisms is that triggering them will cause something undesirable to happen, and thus are only used in situations where death or serious injury could occur otherwise.

• Paint tin: A backup key is stored in a tin of paint, ink or motor oil in such a way that recovering the key will cause the contents of the container to spill, causing costly damage to a carpet or other possessions. This mechanism can be used for extremely quick release in an emergency such as a fire.

• Unpleasant drink: An unpleasant liquid, such as urine (the safety of this is discussed in the article Urophagia
  Urophagia
  Urophagia is the consumption of urine. There are various reasons that humans may consume urine. Urine was used in several ancient cultures for various health, healing, and cosmetic purposes, practices which are still used by some people of these cultures today...
  
  ), is stored in a container. The key is only released when the contents of the container have been drunk (it should be designed so that the contents can not be spilled). The idea is to make the drink so unpleasant that it will only be considered as a last resort.

• Rescue: A friend or relative is notified to come over at a certain time (that time being after the bondage session is planned to end). The friend may or may not be aware of the bondage. An alternative is to position a phone somewhere that is accessible during the bondage, so that a friend or the emergency services may be called if the planned release mechanisms fail.

Techniques

Apart from release mechanisms, self-bondage poses a somewhat awkward problem of getting into bondage, especially when using rope. What might be a relatively simple matter for couples can be considerably more complex alone.

With rope, the main difficulty is tying the hand

Hand

A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered extremity located at the end of an arm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs...

s in a way that is not easy to untie. One common solution is to use a cinch noose

Hangman's knot

The hangman's knot or hangman's noose is a well-known knot most often associated with its use in hanging. For a hanging, the knot of the rope is typically placed under or just behind the left ear. When the condemned drops to the end of the rope, the force is supposed to break the neck...

— essentially a kind of slip knot

Slip knot

A slip knot is one of two different classes of knot. The most common are knots which attach a line to an object and tighten when tension is applied to the free end of the line...

 — together with a coil (a loop

Loop (knot)

In reference to knots, loop may refer to:* One of the fundamental structures used to tie knots. Specifically, it is a full circle formed by passing the working end over itself.* A type of knot used to create a closed circle in a line....

 of rope). The wrist

Wrist

In human anatomy, the wrist is variously defined as 1) the carpus or carpal bones, the complex of eight bones forming the proximal skeletal segment of the hand;...

s are placed through the coil with the cinch noose between the wrists and around the coil. To achieve a basic hogtie

Hogtie bondage

The hogtie is a bondage position in which a submissive's wrists and ankles are fastened together behind their back using some form of physical restraints, such as rope or cuffs....

 position, the cinch noose is tied to the ankle

Ankle

The ankle joint is formed where the foot and the leg meet. The ankle, or talocrural joint, is a synovial hinge joint that connects the distal ends of the tibia and fibula in the lower limb with the proximal end of the talus bone in the foot...

s. With pressure, the noose tightens the wrist coil, securing the hands. It proves very difficult to escape from, and usually a knife or scissors is required to cut free.

Equipment that can be tightened only, and not loosened, often has application in self-bondage. This includes handcuffs, zip ties and ratcheting

Ratchet (device)

A ratchet is a device that allows continuous linear or rotary motion in only one direction while preventing motion in the opposite direction. Because most socket wrenches today use ratcheting handles, the term "ratchet" alone is often used to refer to a ratcheting wrench, and the terms "ratchet"...

 pulley

Pulley

A pulley, also called a sheave or a drum, is a mechanism composed of a wheel on an axle or shaft that may have a groove between two flanges around its circumference. A rope, cable, belt, or chain usually runs over the wheel and inside the groove, if present...

s.

Commercial equipment

While for the most part self-bondage is performed using ordinary and easily available equipment (indeed, it lends itself to impromptu adaptation and a "do it yourself" approach), a few commercial products have appeared — in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 and United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

for the most part — catering for the self-bondage practitioner.

External links

• A set of summaries of and references to articles on self-bondage fatalities
• Soc.subculture.bondage-bdsm FAQ appendix
• Time release methods
• Self-bondage techniques
• Translation of the term "self-bondage" to other languages
• IceBondage Self Bondage Safety Information Site & Wiki.
• Glossary of clinical sexology (it - en)