SUB DROP: WHY IT HAPPENS, CONSIDERATION & THE CURE TO SUB DROP

What is sub drop? How does sub drop happen to an individual? What does sub drop happen, and what are some of the considerations? This article explains what a sub drop is, why it happens, some of its considerations, and how to cure sub drop.

Some after-effects come with BDSM, whether extreme or not, and sub drop is one. Many who experience a sub drop will have certain symptoms. Some physical symptoms are cold, fatigue, headaches, nausea, and many others. Emotionally you might experience; anxiety, depression, fear, confusion, and other symptoms. Consider taking care of one another to cure sub drop after a BDSM scene, but not everyone experiences a sub drop.

 After a BDSM, one can experience a variety of things. Orgasmic, connected, exhausted, sore, cold, or even hungry are some of the feelings you may get after a BDSM scene. You are well aware that the submissive one experiences pain and pleasure. But there are also particular feelings that you may experience even after that scene. These feelings may extend even afterward. That is what is called a sub drop. What exactly is a sub drop? Many people with kinks often talk about a sub drop. It may be very difficult to understand a sub drop if you are foreign to this. Exhaustion and feeling cold are the common symptoms of the sub drop. It is rather not often you feel cold suddenly. During the BDSM scene, you might not have felt the pain, but still, your body was experiencing it. There are hormones at play when you don't feel the pain. When the pain stops, then your body stops producing this mixture of hormones, and it is then that you experience a sub drop.

Subspace 

Some individuals probably wonder how people cooperate with sex and get satisfaction from this. Individuals can endure so much pain in some intense BDSM sex scenes and is always through subspace. Xu et al. (2022) explained that when you are in subspace, you might feel disconnected from your body, so numb. Some explain the feeling like you are floating on air. But subspace is different with different people; sometimes, it may be too intense that you can't speak. Subspace is similar to runner's high, the sudden exhaustion players or athletes find themselves after a workout. It is whether they were feeling tedious or not throughout the workout. Some people even compare it to the feeling you have under the influence of strong drugs where you can’t feel anything happening around you. 

The Chemical Mixture

According to Abayomi (2019), the involvement of a mixture of hormones when an individual is in a scene as their body's compassionate nervous system responds to stressors is what causes a subspace. These hormones are:

Endorphins

Exercise increases endorphins though it is not yet determined whether they alter pain perception, as they are believed to decrease pain. They can also lead to feelings of euphoria.

Enkephalins

They are secreted in the central and peripheral nervous systems. These peptides are broken down when pain is reduced.

Epinephrine

These are produced when your body senses stress. Any form of pain makes your body produce adrenaline. However, people incorporate adrenaline to reduce pain. However, this is not the case; what happens is that adrenaline increases the sensation of the pain but accompanies it with other stresses that overshadow the feeling.

Dopamine

This hormone explains why some people enjoy erotic pain. Dopamine is associated with pleasure, and it increases when someone expects a reward and can be sexually related, making some people enjoy erotic pain.

These hormones are powerful at creating positive feelings and reducing pain as they work and morphine.

Pain and Exhaustion  

Oddie (2020) stated that this is the most obvious after-effect of a BDSM scene. Cortisol is one hormone known to rise during a BDSM scene. However, much as you enjoy spanking and caning, your body will still find this stressful. Cortisol is released by the adrenal gland to prevent damage to your tissue due to inflammation which is just the physical effects. BDSM also affects your mental and emotional well-being. Ensure you take care of yourself after the scene to ensure your health is in check, both physically and mentally. 

Aftercare to Combat Sub Drop 

How do you deal with the negative effects of sub drop to keep your health in check? Schori et al. (2020), in BDSM aftercare, are the actions provided to the submissive by their dominant. You can also provide aftercare yourself as it concentrates more on your mental and physical well-being. A refreshing drink full of electrolytes and a snack can have you feeling better. If cold, a blanket or clothing to keep you warm might be just what you need. Cuddling is also a good form of aftercare since it calms down the nerves. Also, consider sleeping; a good nap will help your body return to its normal state after a sub drop. Just make sure that the submissive doesn't stay alone after the scene. 

Aftercare in public 

Most of these forms of aftercare are best provided in private settings. But if you decide to go outside, find areas where you can have some privacy. Aftercare usually takes a few hours. However, you can check in with your partner. Even if it was a one-time thing, check on them after a few days. Please find out how they are doing and whether they are okay after the experience. If, however, you happen to be experiencing a sub drop on your own, check in with someone over the phone. You should be concerned about your health, so follow up on how you feel during the days that follow after the scene.

The Top Drop

The after-effects of a BDSM scene can also affect the dominant one. Hence the top drop. is just the same as the sub drop. You and your partner can therefore provide aftercare for each other. You can subsequently prepare things needed for the aftercare in advance or introduce a third party to ensure you both receive adequate aftercare. However, not every submissive person experiences a sub drop. Individuals should be careful since a sub drop is one of the major risks of BDSM. It is alarming, especially if it's your first time or you experience it differently from normal.

Conclusion 

Before indulging in anything, make sure you assess the risks and benefits of the decision you are about to make. BDSM has the risks that come with it, not to mention the sub drop, which is not the only risk but a major risk. Make sure you have safe words to use during the scene to tell your partner when to go easy or stop altogether. But these let not stop you from having a good time with BDSM. Assessing the risk helps you understand what you are getting yourself into and how to combat it.

References

Abayomi, A. (2019). Towards real-time tracking of persons in distress phase situations using emotional, physiological signals (Doctoral dissertation, Durban University of Technology).

Oddie, M. (2020). BDSM and Women’s Gendered Embodiment: Other-Than-Sex Pleasure, Pain, and Power (Doctoral dissertation, Queen's University (Canada)).

Schori, A., Jackowski, C., & Schön, C. A. (2021). How safe is BDSM? A literature review on fatal outcomes in BDSM play. International journal of legal medicine, 1-9.Xu, D., Dong, M., Chen, Y., Delgado, A. M., Hughes, N. C., Zhang, L., & O’Connor, D. H. (2022). Cortical processing of flexible and context-dependent sensorimotor sequences. Nature, 603(7901), 464-469.