How BDSM Impacts My Mental Health

In the last 16 years that I have been in the BDSM lifestyle, I have tried my best to explore how mental health affects and is affected by lifestyle choices. While finding a class about the subject at my university has not been an option, in the background of my normal studies as I seek my BS of Psychology, I have spent many hours researching, reading, and talking to other people I encounter.

I have never wanted to keep my mental health struggles a secret as I have written about my journey as a submissive. While I see many blogs and posts and books write about experiences with in the BDSM lifestyle, I have always felt that the majority of these writings show a polished side to our lifestyle. You can attend classes about consent, demos about caning, conventions based around rope. Some of the better classes I have been privileged to be in the audience for talk about how to create a lifestyle inclusive of neurodivergence.

What I feel is left in the dark, however, are the silent struggles that a person may experience when mental health events are present. How does a submissive cope and readjust their life when their Dominant is dealing with a depressive period? What about when that depressive period turns into a year (or more) long fog that seems to invade every moment of their lives? How is a Dominant expected to respond when their submissive feels so low that getting out of bed doesn’t seem like an option, much less finding the strength of mind to continue to serve in the manner that they always have? When you are a submissive…