Sadomasochism

'S&M'

Sadomasochism is a paraphilia that combines both sadistic and masochistic sexual behavioral patterns. The main characteristic of sadomasochism is the eroticizing of pain. What appears to the outsider to be painful, even very painful, is experienced as somewhat painful but mostly pleasurable and very sexually arousing to the sadomasochist.

The sadist in the sadomasochistic pair is the person who inflicts the pain or punishment; the masochist is the person who submits to the pain, humiliation or control of his or her partner. Sadomasochistic sexual encounters usually occur in the context of scripted scenes that simulate interactions between master or mistress and slave, employer and servant-maid, teacher and student, owner and horse or dog, and parent and child.

Sadomasochists may wear black leather or rubber attire. Some gay males and heterosexuals engage in a genre of sadomasochism known as "leathersex", wearing key chains or colored handkerchiefs symbolizing the role being played. Wearing keys on the left side indicates that the individual is a sadist; on the right indicates that he or she prefers the role of masochist.

Sadomasochists tend to alternate between the masochistic and sadistic roles. In milder form, without overt cruelty or bodily punishment, dominance and submissive behaviors may be found in many relationships, or may be an element of fantasy life.

Although sadomasochistic acts in their extreme forms can be physically and psychologically dangerous, the majority of people engaging in these behaviors do so with an understanding of the risks and stay within carefully predetermined limits.

Sadomasochism seems to be in fashion these days. Paperbacks on brutal passions involving pain, physical restraint and servitude are published in large numbers. Sex shops have tons of sex toys and gear for inflicting pain. The web sites destined for the lost and brokenhearted are rife with announcements posted by submissives looking for dominants and vice versa.

Being involved in dominant/submissive relationships on a regular basis is often referred to as being “in the lifestyle.” It would be wrong to imagine a lifestyler as a submissive person handcuffed to a radiator, someone who is continually humiliated by a dominant. In actuality, the above practices fall under the category of roleplaying. The partners who are “in the lifestyle” may resemble a somewhat old-fashioned couple of like-minded individuals.

Terminologies

- B&D is Bondage and Domination involving physical constraint, tying, role plays, servitude, humiliation and punishment;

- D&S is Dominance and Submission involves non-play dominant/submissive behavior that exceeds the limits of “sensation play”. The partners usually agree on a dominant/submissive pattern prior to engaging in such an activity.

- S&M means Sadism and Masochism i.e. practices in which physical pain is inflicted for mutual enjoyment.

- Vanilla, derivative from “vanilla ice cream, is a term used for referring to anything unrelated to BDSM e.g. vanilla man, vanilla relationship, vanilla sex etc.

- The emphasis on informed consent and safety is known as SSC (safe, sane and consensual), though others prefer the term RACK (Risk-Aware Consensual Kink), believing that it places more emphasis on acknowledging the fact that all activities are potentially risky.

- In BDSM, a top is a partner who takes the role of giver in such acts as bondage, flogging, humiliation, or servitude. The top performs acts such as these upon the bottom, who is the person receiving for the duration of a scene. Although it is easy to assume that a top is dominant and a bottom is submissive, it is not necessarily so.

Switching stands for playing both dominant and submissive roles, either during a single scene or taking on different roles at different occasions with different partners. A switch will be the top on some occasions and the bottom on other occasions.

Case

Sadomasochism Bondage Death in Massachusetts Raises Legal Questions

Thursday, October 11, 2007 Fox News

LYNN, Mass. — Adrian Exley was wrapped tightly in heavy plastic, then bound with duct tape. A leather hood was put over his head with a thin plastic straw inserted so that he could breathe, and he was shut up in a closet.

That, apparently, was the way Exley liked it. But the way it ended — with Exley suffocating — was not what he had in mind when he traveled from Britain for a bondage session with a man he had met through a sadomasochism Web site.

Exley's body was discovered in the woods last year, two months after he was bound up in the bondage "playroom" Gary LeBlanc had built in the basement of his suburban Boston home. LeBlanc, a 48-year-old Gulf Oil sales executive, detailed his responsibility in the fatal bondage session in a five-page suicide note, just before he put a gun to his head and killed himself.

Now the question is: Since Exley consented to the sex play, can LeBlanc be held responsible for his death?

Exley's family is suing LeBlanc's estate for unspecified damages, claiming wrongful death. Many bondage enthusiasts are watching the case closely, seeing it as lesson in where to draw the line of responsibility on consensual but dangerous sex.

Exley and LeBlanc met through an online forum for gay men into rubber, leather and bondage. Exley, a 32-year-old stripper, used the screen name "Studpup," while LeBlanc called himself "Rubrman" and built a chamber with rubber mats on the floors and walls, chains, leather restraints, rubber suits and a hospital gurney.

Exley arrived at LeBlanc's house in Lynn in April 2006 after the pair had exchanged e-mails in which they discussed plans for LeBlanc to play the "master" and Exley his "slave," according to the lawsuit.

John Andrews, a lawyer for LeBlanc's estate, said Exley knew the risks going in. "What occurred was an act or actions between two consenting adults, both of whom knew what they were doing, and it had a tragic end," he said.

The lawsuit describes a three-day bondage and discipline session that ended when a third man, Scott Vincent, discovered Exley was not breathing. Exley had been put in a closet while bound in plastic up to his neck and left alone for several hours, according to the lawsuit.

In his suicide note, LeBlanc admitted that Exley at one point had trouble breathing. But he said that after "cooling him down," Exley improved. LeBlanc said that he went to sleep about 3 a.m. but was woken up a few hours later by Vincent, who told him Exley was not breathing and was turning blue and cold.

LeBlanc said he panicked, and he and Vincent drove to Rhode Island, where they buried the body and threw away Exley's clothing and identification.

The Rhode Island medical examiner determined that Exley suffocated. Vincent said in a sworn statement that the straw had fallen out of his mouth in the closet.

"The law says if a person causes the death of another person by an act which is either negligent or reckless, that person is liable," Cook said. "You have a duty to behave reasonably. I think it's the same thing here, albeit a very strange set of facts."

It was Exley's mother, Maggie Horner, who decided to sue LeBlanc's estate.

"We decided that we didn't want Gary's last wishes being granted when Adrian's couldn't be," she said. "Why should Gary be able to kill my son, bury my son, shoot himself and still get his own way?"

Necrophilia

"love of the dead"

Necrophilia is a paraphilia characterized by a sexual attraction to corpses. The word is artificially derived from Ancient Greek nekros- "corpse," or "dead" and philia- "love".

Necrophilia can best be described as sexual arousal stimulated by a dead body. The stimulation can be either in the form of fantasies or actual physical sexual contact with the corpse.

The DSM-IV-TR criteria for necrophilia are the presence, over a period of at least six months, of recurrent and intense urges and sexually arousing fantasies involving corpses which are either acted upon or have been markedly distressing.

Even in its truest form, necrophilia can be quite varied, ranging from simply being in the presence of a corpse to kissing, fondling or performing sexual intercourse or cunnilingus on the body.

For psychologist Erich Fromm, necrophilia is a character orientation which is not necessarily sexual. It is expressed in an attraction to that which is dead or totally controlled. At the extreme, it results in destructiveness and a hatred of life.

For Fromm, necrophilia is the opposite of biophilia, that it is not biologically determined but results from upbringing. Fromm believed that the lack of love in the western society and the attraction to mechanistic control leads to necrophilia.

Cultural Aspects

Necrophilia was practiced in some ancient cultures as a spiritual means of communicating with the dead, while others employed it as an attempt to revive the recently departed. The evidence of necrophilia practices can be found in the artifacts of the Moche civilization of South America, where pottery depicting skeletal figures engaged in coitus with living humans are among the ruins.

In some cases the use of dead bodies for the purposes of sexual gratification is purely opportunistic, an activity encountered among those who have professional dealings with corpses in the course of their daily work, for example undertakers and morgue attendants. The practice was rumoured to be prevalent among the embalmers of ancient Egypt to such a degree that the bodies of highly-born women were not embalmed immediately after death but allowed to become slightly putrid as a deterrent. There is, however, no evidence that a desire for sexual relations with corpses leads individuals into these professions. Those who come into constant routine contact with corpses soon acquire a familiarity with them which might lead to using them as what could be considered an extremely bizarre masturbatory aid.

Causes

- The necrophile develops poor self-esteem, perhaps due in part to a significant loss. He (usually male) is very fearful of rejection by women and he desires a sexual partner who is incapable of rejecting him and or he is fearful of the dead, and transforms his fear — by means of reaction formation — into a desire.

-He develops an exciting fantasy of sex with a corpse, sometimes after exposure to a corpse.

-Other factors include; the impact of modern weapon systems, idolotry of technology, and the treatment of people as things in bureaucracy.

-Minor modern researches conducted in England have shown that some necrophiles tend to choose a dead mate after failing to create romantic attachments with the living.

According to reports of sample of 'necrophiliacs,' 68 percent were motivated by a desire for an unresisting and unrejecting partner; 21 percent by a want for reunion with a lost partner; 15 percent by sexual attraction to dead people; 15 percent by a desire for comfort or to overcome feelings of isolation; and 12 percent by a desire to remedy low self-esteem by expressing power over a corpse.

"When the wife of a distinguished man dies, or any woman who happens to be beautiful or well known, her body is not given to the embalmers immediately, but only after the lapse of three or four days. This is a precautionary measure to prevent the embalmers from violating her corpse, a thing which is actually said to have happened in the case of a woman who had just died." (de Selincourt)


Notable necrophiles

+Carl Tanzler

Carl Tanzler was a radiologist in Key West, Florida who developed a morbid obsession for Elena Milagro Hoyos (1910-1931). She was one of his patients, and she died from tuberculosis in 1931. With her parents' permission, Tanzler had an above ground mausoleum built for her, so she wouldn't decompose underground. He visited the tomb almost every night, but in 1933, his obsession apparently overcame him, as he took Hoyos' corpse home with him and kept it in his bed. He restored her body as best he could and kept a full wardrobe to dress her. As her body decomposed, he replaced the skin with wax and plaster of Paris, and bought copious amounts of perfume, often several times a month. In 1940, one of Hoyos's surviving sisters became suspicious due to omnipresent rumors of Tanzler's necrophilia, and eventually confronted Tanzler at his home. She entered Tanzler's house and found Elena's corpse lying in his bed in an elegant dress, almost fully decomposed. Tanzler was later arrested and charged with "wantonly and maliciously destroying a grave and removing a body without authorization," but he was ultimately released, as the statute of limitations on the crime had expired.

Necrophilia has also been a motive for some serial killers, including Richard Chase, Ed Gein, Winston Moseley, Dennis Nilsen, John Reginald Halliday Christie, Bruno Lüdke, Jerry Brudos, Gary Ridgway, Ted Bundy, and Jeffrey Dahmer, who ate his victims after killing them (although Dahmer had only confessed to eating the bicep of a male); the technical term for this particular variant activity is necrophagia. Several other murderers have described drawing sexual excitement from killing, as well, such as Karla Faye Tucker, who claimed to have an orgasm with each swing of the axe she used to kill Jerry Lynn Dean. The guilty-plea testimony provided by the recently captured (2005) serial killer Dennis Rader provided a rare public glimpse into the workings of such a controlling mind.

Exhibitionism

"exposing self"/"indecent exposure"/"flashing"

Exhibitionism, known variously as flashing, apodysophilia and Lady Godiva syndrome, is the psychological need and pattern of behavior to exhibit naked parts of the body to another person with a tendency toward an extravagant, usually at least partially sexually inspired behavior to captivate the attention of another in an open display of bare "private parts", parts of the human body which would otherwise be left covered under clothing in nearly all other cultural circumstances. A disorder in which the act of exposing the genitals to an unsuspecting stranger produces sexual excitement with no attempt at further sexual activity with the stranger." Law enforcement people invariably call it "indecent exposure".

Involves intense, recurrent and sexually arousing fantasies involving the exposure of the individual's genitals. This may, in turn, translate into putting this fantasy into action and engaging in these behaviors. However, a key feature of this need is that the individual be a stranger or unsuspecting. This disorder is characterized by either intense sexually arousing fantasies, urges, or behaviors in which the individual exposes his or her genitals to an unsuspecting stranger. To be considered diagnosable, the fantasies, urges, or behaviors must cause significant distress in the individual or be disruptive to his or her everyday functioning.

Typically, the part(s) of the body exposed when referring to "flashing" are bare female breasts and/or buttocks. In theory, however, flashing and exhibitionism can also involve the genitalia or buttocks of either gender. A "male flasher" stands in stark comparison to this definition as the latter usually refers to a male indecently exposing his penis to an unwilling observer.

Usually, flashing is done as a momentary "thrill" to inflate the ego of the flasher while having the "added bonus" of increasing the sexual arousal of the recipient(s). Exhibitionists who view exhibitionism as a lifestyle as opposed to a rare thrill, however, more carefully select their target audience and make the exposure brief, inconspicuous and apparently unintentional. While all exhibitionism is, whether on the end of the giver or the receiver, ultimately a sexual fetish, many practitioners see it as an art form. Night clubs and goth bars encourage mild exhibitionism to enhance the venue's atmosphere. This all contrasts with non-sexualized social nudity, in which the exposure is not connected with sexual expression, such as sunbathing or swimming at nude beaches or other participation in public nudity events where nudity is the norm.

Some exhibitionists wish to display themselves sexually to other people singly or in groups. This can be done consensually as part of swinging or group sex. When done non-threateningly, the intent is usually to surprise and/or sexually arouse the viewer, giving the exhibitionist an ego rush. Some people like to expose themselves in front of large crowds, typically at sporting events; see streaking. A similar phenomenon is when, at the conclusion of a sporting event, a woman may flash her breasts while sitting atop someone's shoulders in a dense crowd of people. Other exhibitionists like to go beyond physical exposure and use the internet to distribute their stories and pictures on websites, sometimes using webcam feeds and other amateur methods. A further purpose here could be to further sexually arouse the recipient by giving the impression that the exposure is "first time" and/or "innocent."

Many mild and considered acceptable forms of exhibitionism are considered normal in our culture. Children often have a natural curiosity about their genitals and the genitals of others. Young children may like to try to shock adults or other children by showing their genitals or underwear. This is typically a passing phase and only calls for professional treatment if it persists. Similarly, adolescents have been expressing disapproval through "mooning" for years. Wearing suggestive clothing or strip teasing for a significant other are common activities.

In order to be correctly diagnosed with this condition, you need to meet two criteria:

- Over a period of at least 6 months, recurrent, intense sexually arousing fantasies, sexual urges, or behaviors involving the exposure of one's genitals to an unsuspecting stranger.
-The person has acted on these urges, or the sexual urges or fantasies cause marked distress or interpersonal difficulty. This causes clinically important distress or impairs work, social or personal functioning.

One expert in the field of treating paraphilias has suggested classifying the symptoms of exhibitionism according to level of severity, based on criteria from the DSM-III-R(1987):

* Mild. The person has recurrent fantasies of exposing himself, but has rarely or never acted on them.
* Moderate.The person has occasionally exposed himself (three targets or fewer) and has difficulty controlling urges to do so.
* Severe. The person has exposed himself to more than three people and has serious problems with control.
* A fourth level of severity, catastrophic, would not be found in exhibitionists without other paraphilias. This level denotes the presence of sadistic fantasies which, if acted upon, would result in severe injury or death to the victim.

Causes
These could be things such as traumatic experiences or chance associations and stay with us for the rest of our lives.

* Biological theories. These generally hold that testosterone, the hormone that influences the sexual drive in both men and women, increases the susceptibility of males to develop deviant sexual behaviors. Some medications used to treat exhibitionists are given to lower the patients' testosterone levels.

* Learning theories. Several studies have shown that emotional abuse in childhood and family dysfunction are both significant risk factors in the development of exhibitionism.

* Psychoanalytical theories. These are based on the assumption that male gender identity requires the male child's separation from his mother psychologically so that he does not identify with her as a member of the same sex, the way a girl does. It is thought that exhibitionists regard their mothers as rejecting them on the basis of their different genitals. Therefore, they grow up with the desire to force women to accept them by making women look at their genitals.

* Head trauma. There are a small number of documented cases of men becoming exhibitionists following traumatic brain injury (TBI) without previous histories of alcohol abuse or sexual offenses.

* A childhood history of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The reason for the connection is not yet known, but researchers at Harvard have discovered that patients with multiple paraphilias have a much greater likelihood of having had ADHD as children than men with only one paraphilia.

Sexual Aversion Disorder

Sexual Aversion Disorder

Definition of Sexual Aversion Disorder

An avoidance of or aversion to genital sexual contact. It is a psychological disorder where the person seeks to avoid sex and undertakes various behaviors to avoid sex. This disorder includes the older sexual condition known as "frigidity". It is characterized characterized by disgust, fear, revulsion, or lack of desire in consensual relationships involving genital contact.

It is sometimes referred as Inhibited sexual desire (ISD), sometimes called frigidity, sexual aversion, sexual apathy or hypoactive sexual desire, refers to a low level of sexual desire and interest manifested by a failure to initiate or be responsive to a partner's initiation of sexual activity. It may be a primary condition (where the person has never felt much sexual desire or interest), or secondary (where the person used to possess sexual desire, but no longer has interest).

Sexual aversion disorder represents a much stronger dislike of and active avoidance of sexual activity than the normal ups and downs in desire described above. Sexual aversion disorder is characterized not only by a lack of desire, but also by fear, revulsion, disgust, or similar emotions when the person with the disorder engages in genital contact with a partner. The aversion may take a number of different forms; it may be related to specific aspects of sexual intercourse, such as the sight of the partner's genitals or the smell of his or her body secretions, but it may include kissing, hugging, and petting as well as intercourse itself. In some cases the person with sexual aversion disorder avoids any form of sexual contact; others, however, are not upset by kissing and caressing, and are able to proceed normally until genital contact occurs.

It can also be either situational to the partner (where he/she has interest in other persons, but not toward the partner), or it may be general (where he/she has a lack of sexual interest in anyone). In the extreme form of sexual aversion, the person not only lacks sexual desire, but may also find sex repulsive, revolting, and distasteful.

Sometimes, rather than being inhibited, there may simply be a discrepancy in sexual interest levels between two partners, both of whom have interest levels within the normal range. Sexual Aversion disorder is a very common sexual disorder. The most common cause seems to be relationship problems wherein one partner does not feel emotionally intimate or close to their mate. Individuals who were victims of childhood sexual abuse or rape, and persons whose marriages are lacking in emotional intimacy are particularly at risk of Sexual Aversion Disorder.

There are several subclassifications of sexual aversion disorder. It may be lifelong (always present) or acquired after a traumatic experience; situational (with a specific partner or in a specific set of circumstances) or generalized (occurring with any partner and in all situations). Sexual aversion may be caused by psychological factors or by a combination of physical and psychological factors.

It is over-diagnosed in cases where the patient has other reasons that are interfering with sexuality, such as tiredness, fatigue, other causes of low libido, or other causes of sexual pain. Also possible is inadequate foreplay or poor sexual technique. Such a person does not have a true aversion to sex. Sexual aversion disorder can be under-diagnosed in cases of sexual pain or other apparent psychological problems with sex. Physicians may assume a history of rape or childhood sexual abuse where none exists.

Commonly overlooked factors include insomnia or inadequate amounts of sleep, resulting in fatigue. ISD may also be associated with other sexual dysfunctions, and sometimes may be caused by them. For example, the woman who is unable to have orgasm or has pain with intercourse, or the man who has erection problems (impotence) or retarded ejaculation, may lose interest in sex because it is commonly associated with failure or is not very pleasurable. As women age beyond their child-bearing years, their interest in sex may begin to decline. This may lead to frigidity. The frigidity may cause problems in a relationship where, typically, the male partner continues to seek an active sexual experience with his partner.

Symptoms of Sexual Aversion Disorder


* Infertility
* Family dysfunction
* Marital conflict

Mild symptoms include lack of interest and mild disgust. Severe symptoms can include panic attacks with all the symptoms of such an attack, including dizziness, shortness of breath, intense fear, and rapid heartbeat. People suffering from sexual aversion disorder often go out of their way to avoid situations that could end in sexual contact through any means they can think of, including going to bed at different times from the spouse, spending extra time at work, or trying to make themselves less sexually attractive.

Causes of Sexual Aversion Disorder

The most common causes are interpersonal problems and traumatic experiences. Interpersonal problems generally cause situation-specific sexual aversion disorder, in which the symptoms occur only with a specific partner or under certain conditions. In such cases, underlying tension or discontent with the relationship is often the cause. Reasons for unhappiness with the relationship may include the discovery of marital infidelity; major disagreements over children, money, and family roles; domestic violence; lack of personal hygiene on the partner's side; or similar problems. Interpersonal problems are often the cause if intercourse was once enjoyed but is no longer desired.

There are a number of reasons that people lose interest in sexual intercourse. It is normal to experience a loss of desire during menopause; directly after the birth of a child; before or during menstruation; during recovery from an illness or surgery; and during such major or stressful life changes as death of a loved one, job loss, retirement, or divorce. These are considered normal causes for fluctuations in sexual desire and are generally temporary. Changing roles, such as becoming a parent for the first time or making a career change have also been found to cause loss of desire. Not having enough time for oneself or to be alone with one's partner may also contribute to normal and naturally reversible loss of desire. Loss of privacy resulting from moving a dependent elderly parent into one's home is a common cause of loss of desire in middle-aged couples. Depression, fatigue, or stress also contribute to lessening of sexual interest.

Communication problems, lack of affection that is not associated with continuing into sexual intercourse, power struggles and conflicts, and a lack of time alone together are common factors. It may also be associated with a very restrictive upbringing concerning sex, negative attitudes toward sex, or negative or traumatic sexual experiences (such as incest, or sexual abuse).

Physical illnesses and some medications may also contribute to Sexual Aversion Disorder, particularly when they produce fatigue, pain, or general feelings of malaise. Hormone deficiencies may occasionally be implicated. Psychological conditions such as depression and excessive stress may inhibit sexual interest. Disturbed dietary mineral intakes may undermine sexual desire.

Traumatic experiences have also been found to cause sexual aversion disorder, often of the generalized variety. Some possible traumas include rape, incest, molestation, or other forms of sexual abuse. The patient then associates intercourse with a painful experience or memory, possibly one that he or she is trying to forget. Sexual aversion disorder may also be caused by religious or cultural teachings that associate sexual activity with excessive feelings of guilt.