If you could tell the public...

CapturedDoll said:

If you could tell the public in ONE or TWO sentences, what Tickling is about... Or what it means to you. Or why they should consider trying it... What would you say? (And of course some of you woulden't say anything... this is to those who would.)

Idk what I would say. I'll have to think about it. Which is funny... I've a zillion thoughts about it. But to sum it up in one or 2 sentences to the public is hard. A lot of you think the public hates this or thinks of it in a bad light. (I'm not saying you're wrong... a lot DO hate it.) I'm not debating that. But if you DID have the opportunity... the microphone is handed to you... and the entire world is listening. What would you say to turn around the public's opinion?

Edit: So... I have a Twitter account that I'm not using for Tickling. But... it's such a huge part of me... I want people to know this about me. So that I can answer quesitons people might have about it. So I headed my profile with this:

"I am a Knismolagnia Fetishist. (Tickling) I entertain people with my various content. Tickling is like being a Comedian... only hands on."

I think that's a cute way to put it. Leaving the sexual side out of it almost completely. So that it's palatable.

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First off, Doll, this is a great idea for a post

Second, as someone who gives lectures for a living (at least twice a week, with a major conference in front of a big audience every trimester), I always had the fantasy of giving one about tickling. Or about the use of tickling as torture. I played out that scenario in my head countless times, with a stage, a powerpoint, and videos, or maybe a live demonstration, Dan Mitrione-style (cue evil laughter ). That'd be awesome. I often wondered what my approach would be, to present the fetish in a sort of scientific, to-the-point kind of way, while trying to be funny and interesting. I can think of many ways I could do it, and that alone would be epic. And it would be a welcome departure from my usual topics.

There's another aspect to your question: how do we explain... THIS to the vanillas? It's not as simple as it sounds. A tickle fetish is not an easy concept to grasp. My wife took a bit of time to understand the power of this fetish, and I bet a lot of people would as well. It's not like a foot fetish or an attraction for a certain morphology, and it's not S&M either. It's its own thing, and it is somehow hard to give it justice. To some, it is childish. To others like WheresTheClip, it is a form of abuse (and to be honest, he's right, it sometimes can be; please notice the emphasis on "sometimes can"). The truth, the wholesome dimension of our fetish, lies somewhere between those two extremes, buried deep inside our most complex neural patterns.

I have explained this fetish to vanillas or even BDSM people more than a few times. Usually it was to my ex-girlfriends and other partners. Other times it's been to friends. I think they get it, especially that in my case, my sadistic side sort of overlaps with my tickle fetish, so most understand it as a sort of means to the end of humiliating and torturing my victim. But truth be told, it's more complicated than that. Tickling is not merely a means to an end, it is an end in and by itself. True, I enjoy tickle torture tremendously. But casual tickling, playful tickling and erotic tickling play just as big a part in my life. Sometimes I crave it more than my more sadistic fantasies. I suppose one really has to be one of us to understand it fully.

First off, Doll, this is a great idea for a post

Second, as someone who gives lectures for a living (at least twice a week, with a major conference in front of a big audience every trimester), I always had the fantasy of giving one about tickling. Or about the use of tickling as torture. I played out that scenario in my head countless times, with a stage, a powerpoint, and videos, or maybe a live demonstration, Dan Mitrione-style (cue evil laughter ). That'd be awesome. I often wondered what my approach would be, to present the fetish in a sort of scientific, to-the-point kind of way, while trying to be funny and interesting. I can think of many ways I could do it, and that alone would be epic. And it would be a welcome departure from my usual topics.

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I’m glad you like my idea!

I would so go to that! I mean really… that sounds awesome. XD

There's another aspect to your question: how do we explain... THIS to the vanillas? It's not as simple as it sounds. A tickle fetish is not an easy concept to grasp. My wife took a bit of time to understand the power of this fetish, and I bet a lot of people would as well. It's not like a foot fetish or an attraction for a certain morphology, and it's not S&M either. It's its own thing, and it is somehow hard to give it justice. To some, it is childish. To others like WheresTheClip, it is a form of abuse (and to be honest, he's right, it sometimes can be; please notice the emphasis on "sometimes can"). The truth, the wholesome dimension of our fetish, lies somewhere between those two extremes, buried deep inside our most complex neural patterns.

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I completely agree. While WheresTheClip post went WAY overboard- It did bring to light that… there are probably many people who think this way in some form. They may have different ways to express it… but… with some of the stories I’ve read… yes people do use it for abuse. Although these same people may have even MORE extreme ways of expressing it.

This particular post was about as eye opening as it gets. Since I read it, I thought more about it. In it’s own way… it serves as a warning to both the public AND US. Everyone has to be careful on whom you meet on the internet. That is what I took from his post ultimately. And I thank him for that. While I couldn't have done that on my first reading of it… in hindsight, it actually serves a purpose. One I wasn’t prepared for but… that’s the reality of it for a lot of people.

Also I agree that for a lot of us (me included) the gambit runs from playful to torture. (sexual /non sexual)For myself I enjoy the entire spectrum but… leans very much towards tickle torture. But I could never state it as WheresTheClip did. So in telling the public what this is- yeah there’s no real way to simplify it without talking at length about it. But I wanted people to try. Because all of us could, and do go on for pages and pages about why we enjoy it. So I thought it would be interesting to see people TRY to do it.

I have explained this fetish to vanillas or even BDSM people more than a few times. Usually it was to my ex-girlfriends and other partners. Other times it's been to friends. I think they get it, especially that in my case, my sadistic side sort of overlaps with my tickle fetish, so most understand it as a sort of means to the end of humiliating and torturing my victim. But truth be told, it's more complicated than that. Tickling is not merely a means to an end, it is an end in and by itself. True, I enjoy tickle torture tremendously. But casual tickling, playful tickling and erotic tickling play just as big a part in my life. Sometimes I crave it more than my more sadistic fantasies. I suppose one really has to be one of us to understand it fully.

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Of course. But again, this was just to see people try to express it in a couple sentences. I tried to think of this as if say, we were being given a moment on a newscast. And a few of us were picked to give about 10 seconds of air time. A few sentences is all we would have. (In this hypothetical.)

Thanks everyone who has responded so far.

porcelaindoll2 said:

I like to tickle and be tickled because it turns me on and I like the loss of control. No I don't just go around tickling random people because consent is very important!

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If you enjoy the loss of control sensation and feel like laughing, I have a solution...

But for me, we have to agree... is whether you want me to Ler or to Lee!

Poetic insight?

Wow, what a great question to pose, Captured Doll, and what a great discussion thus far! Thank you, Captured Doll, for bringing up this topic, and thank you all here in this forum for sharing.

I would say the following:

"Tickling to me is an experience like no other on the planet. If it's done right, with kindness and compassion shown to you, or you showing it to the person being tickled, you can get a vast array of benefits, from an amazing workout just by laughing, to unbelievable connection with other human beings!'

I like tickling because seeing what's going on on the inside and converting it to laughter is more attractive than what's going on on the outside.

laughtermech said:

Wow, what a great question to pose, Captured Doll, and what a great discussion thus far! Thank you, Captured Doll, for bringing up this topic, and thank you all here in this forum for sharing.

I would say the following:

"Tickling to me is an experience like no other on the planet. If it's done right, with kindness and compassion shown to you, or you showing it to the person being tickled, you can get a vast array of benefits, from an amazing workout just by laughing, to unbelievable connection with other human beings!'

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It is a great discussion! You're welcome. I'm glad you like it!

I really like what you wrote. I think people would focus on the workout aspect and health benefits most of all. And be very curious about that... Some obviously would be dismissive of it... and others would seek out more information which is great.

duderino84 said:

I like tickling because seeing what's going on on the inside and converting it to laughter is more attractive than what's going on on the outside.

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This is such a unique way to put. I really love this. For myself I would replace the word seeing with understanding. We can't really see that - I mean we can but technically we can't LITERALLY see inside them. That's the only reason I would change that word. For clarity. But I certainly know what you mean.

This would really get people thinking. If I were watching this broadcast... I would take away that it doesn't matter what someone looks like. It's the laughter itself that counts. Which I think would be appealing to many people. (I KNOW for a lot of people here that attraction matters. But to the casual observer... I THINK they would take away that it doesn't.) Also you may mean that sex isn't (or doesn't HAVE to be) part of the equation. Which also would be appealing to many.

People read into things and draw their own conclusions. This would do just that. Nice!

I wanted to add one more thing about Where'sTheClip's post. What he said would drive a lot of people way. But there's a flip side. Some people would be drawn into that statement. Adventure seekers... people who enjoy death defying "stunts". Or rather, things that are considered dangerous[/]. Put the stranger aspect aside for a moment. If there is an element of danger to this. (And there is... for people with health issues.) They would sit there on their couch and wonder why. And many would rush to seek it out. Some would say after the fact "Meh that was nothing". Others (expecially with the euphoria and adrenaline rush they experience...) might or would want to do it again. Or at least understand the torture aspect altogether. Which to a great many would be considered dangerous. (Enjoyable to some... absolutely awful to others.)

And some who are either mashochists at heart or into BDSM in general... would also be drawn. Which many have already.

CapturedDoll said:

This is such a unique way to put. I really love this. For myself I would replace the word seeing with understanding. We can't really see that - I mean we can but technically we can't LITERALLY see inside them. That's the only reason I would change that word. For clarity. But I certainly know what you mean.

This would really get people thinking. If I were watching this broadcast... I would take away that it doesn't matter what someone looks like. It's the laughter itself that counts. Which I think would be appealing to many people. (I KNOW for a lot of people here that attraction matters. But to the casual observer... I THINK they would take away that it doesn't.) Also you may mean that sex isn't (or doesn't HAVE to be) part of the equation. Which also would be appealing to many.

People read into things and draw their own conclusions. This would do just that. Nice!

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I'd probably change understanding to feeling lol. Like feeling for shy ticklish spots.

This is a difficult thing for me to express, but here goes nothing:

1-It’s an interesting dynamic to add to any type of relationship, sexual or non-sexual.
2-It’s an interaction that demands the attention of all involved.

For me, it’s quite complicated and I’m not entirely sure. On one level I enjoy the intensity of it all. Loving it, trying to make it stop, but really hoping it doesn’t all at the same time. It’s a rush!

On a more serious reflection: I don’t tolerate people touching me very well. It makes me quite uncomfortable so the whole huggy, handshake, hand on the shoulder thing makes me want to vomit. Literally, I hate the feeling, especially if I don’t have a friendship or romantic relationship with the person. But with tickling, I can tolerate it. The interaction are easier for me to handle and I actually enjoy it. Add a blindfold and I don’t even have to look at the other person! It’s an adrenaline rush like no other.

Sexually, well, it adds a lot of fun to the interaction. You have to focus on each other to succeed on either end. People view sex as this intense romantic moment that has to happen a certain way. In reality it’s awkward and funny. Adding tickling keeps things from getting negative for me. Also, it can make me tight, which makes my partner quite happy totally rambled and went TMI, but I’m exhausted, so there ya go! Lol