The Autism spectruma and BDSM/Bondage

[Sabrina]

Is there a link between being on the Spectrum (which I am) and being interested in bondage.


For as long as I can remember; I ahve always thought being restrained/restraining someone and playing out longish detailed roleplays is far more appealing than sex.


Anyone else like this?.

[ExcessivelyCurious]

Purely annecdotal but I have met... a lot of such people, yes. I'm autistic myself, and obviously from my presence here quite into bondage. But in my various forays into kink groups I've met many other autistic, and generally neurodivergent, people.

As for why, I don't really know. Part of it might just be the whole thing of autistic people already being seen as weird and becoming more open to admitting other "weird" aspects of themselves. There may well be a sensory aspect as well; I quite enjoy the sensory feeling of being tightly tied up, in a way kind of similar to a weighted blanket? (weighted blankets also being quite popular among autistic people)

[captured_prize]

I've never been formally diagnosed with autism (or even tested), but given some of my personality quirks and the fact that I'm a bit socially akward, i wouldn't be suprised if I was on the spectrum.

[uemndlr]

Have a look at this thread:
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=13575

[EngineeringEmily]

I’m autistic, it that doesn’t prove a link. Many of us are sensory overloaded and prefer a heavy blanket to help calm. Bondage is similar.

[OlderJ]

There are some articles out there on the theme of "neurodiversity" and bdsm practices. Autism is certainly a neurological-diverse condition, and the spectrum of involvement is very wide so it seems logical that there is some overlap here for some, or even many, but not all. Think all of us here could be classified as being a bit neuro-diverse because of our kink preferences. But, vive la difference!

[yorkshiredude27]

Is there a link between being on the Spectrum (which I am) and being interested in bondage.


For as long as I can remember; I ahve always thought being restrained/restraining someone and playing out longish detailed roleplays is far more appealing than sex.


Anyone else like this?.

I agree with this, there is just something more satisfying about tying up with someone without the expectation of sex, just to enjoy the moment and have a good time

[BachelorInDistress]

I don't believe there is a correlation between the two. What's very plausible though is that bondage may very well become the special interest of someone with autism who also happens to be into it.

[PenelopeRopes]

Anecdotally, I've seen a disproportionately high rate of people with ADHD that are into BDSM. For me (diagnosed ADHD) and people I've spoken to in the same boat, bondage is such a release. Like my mind's SO busy that literally being restrained so I CAN'T do anything is so nice.

I've often wondered if the sensory side of ASD leads into aspects of BDSM

[yorkshiredude27]

Anecdotally, I've seen a disproportionately high rate of people with ADHD that are into BDSM. For me (diagnosed ADHD) and people I've spoken to in the same boat, bondage is such a release. Like my mind's SO busy that literally being restrained so I CAN'T do anything is so nice.

I've often wondered if the sensory side of ASD leads into aspects of BDSM

As someone who could potentially have ADHD (undiagnosed) I’ve always thought that tying someone up or being tied up was such a release with stress and anxiety. Tying someone up let’s you have that feeling of control and being tied up, having that struggle is like getting some of that anger and stress out

[TieOrBeTied]

As someone who has been diagnosed, I can definitely say that it’s hard to tell for sure. I’ve had a love for bondage since I was a little kid so it’s always something I’ve asked myself but when I research it I find mixed things mostly.

[Anaya]

This is interesting because both of my friends who are on the spectrum are both very interested in bondage stuff. I’m guessing even they don’t know why but it it certainly interesting to think about

[illest]

Anecdotally, I've seen a disproportionately high rate of people with ADHD that are into BDSM. For me (diagnosed ADHD) and people I've spoken to in the same boat, bondage is such a release. Like my mind's SO busy that literally being restrained so I CAN'T do anything is so nice.

I've often wondered if the sensory side of ASD leads into aspects of BDSM

That would explain a lot. My mind goes crazy sometimes with overthinking things and bondage for me takes my mind back to zero and helps me function.