Do you think the appeal of tickling lies in its childishness?

[GoForTheLaugh]

I saw two children tickling each other on and off to the count of 1-2-3 on a bus today, and the game-like quality of the play (while the person I assume was Mamma simply read a book and ignored how loud they were) reminded me of the game-like qualities that many here ascribe to adult to adult tickling.

It got me thinking: Could the stress and angst of our adult lives lead us to this fetish as a way of recapturing childish zest for rough and tumble games? I have not had any tickling experiences like that since I have never done anything for more than a few seconds, but I would certainly describe a number of my sexual experiences as an attempt to recapture the zest and sheer delight of years gone by.

What do the rest of you think?

 

[Tickler Bart]

In My Own Humble opinion . . .

Ain't nuthin' childish about tickling for me.
I do not like tickle fights.
I do not like struggling with each other to tickle each other.
The ticklee MUST be tied down or I MUST be tied down.

 

[toyou444]

Yes, yes and YES!

I love the interplay and the verbalization! The playfulness! Even when it is in a sexual situation with someone I care deeply about that is the thrill for me!

Glad I'm not completely alone in that!

~ toyou (refusing to grow up!)

 

[Red Jester]

I doubt my fetish is just me trying to recapture my childhood considering I've liked tickling since I was four.

 

[BellaRisa]

I doubt my fetish is just me trying to recapture my childhood considering I've liked tickling since I was four.

Thank you Jester. Most of us were born with the kink, we were into it well before we had any adult angst. The stress relief and childlike joy are definitely factors in why we love tickling, but the majority of the reasons are far, far more adult

Bella

 

[Eternal Tomboy]

I agree with Red Jester in that I don't think things started out as a way of recapturing my youth since I too began my love for tickling when I was about five.

But, I do love the playful aspect of tickling. I love tickle fights, teasing, wrestling around and waiting to see who is going to be the one that ends up on top. For me, that kind of play gives me an adrenaline rush. And no matter what my mood was like before the tickle fight, I've always got a smile on my face when it's over.
If my tickle encounters were like Tickle Bart's I think that I would lose interest in tickling very quickly. When someone tries to "seriously" tickle me (or I guess some would classify it as more sensual/sexual) there is little to no ticklish reaction from me. I'm the kind of 'lee that can go from being completely nonticklish to off the charts in a matter of seconds. And the main key to unlocking my ticklishness is to act like a goofball. The more playful the better.


Maggie

 

[stdave]

I enjoy the playfullnes and the fun aspects of tickling so yes I agree that tickling can be a good stress releaser.

 

[Ticklish9's]

YES! Very much so.

It's the fun playfulness of it that makes it awesome. The occasional sexual situation is ok but just plain old, for the fun of it, make each other laugh because it's laughing and that's great, that kind of tickling is awesome! 🙂

 

[AffectionateDan]

I don't try to figure it out...

...I just enjoy it.

That's like asking me why I like a certain color, or flavor, or smell.

I just DO! And that's good enough for me.

 

[milagros317]

I've loved tickling and being tickled since I was 4 years old, so it's hard to say that it recaptures childhood, it's a lifelong interest. (Or maybe I just never grew up.)

 

[AquaFeline]

I can't remember ever being tickled before I was dating someone and asked for it, so I doubt it reminds me of childhood memories.

 

[WorkInProgress]

For me it goes back to childhood, but what it goes back to in childhood more specifically is a fascination with when it's possible to break boundaries and get away with it. And I think, for me, it has to do with having grown up getting mixed signals about boundaries and rules, sometimes learning that they were sacrosanct, other times learning that they could be broken at will. I also grew up with a kind of obsessive, fetishistic fascination with the whole realm of mischief and naughtiness, having learned at a very young age that I was "a naughty boy" and having used it for all the protection it gave me.

 

[battlecat]

Tickle fights

Like others have said for me it's not exactly about recapturing my youth...hell i'm only 25 anyway and even my best friends describe me as being inmature .
I've just always been a fun, playful person anyhow and it's that fun, playful part of tickling that I simply love. It's just the greatest!! You can keep your tieing up, bondage and tickle-torture.... that's just not for me, sorry!!
For me there's nothing more fun than wrestling a girl down onto the floor for a spontaneous tickle fight, pulling someone onto a bed or across my lap and 'getting them'. I love playing silly games like 'Rib counting' or 'Finger writing'....always have, always will ! You are only young once...but you can be inmature and playful for ever!!!
In a way I kinda feel sorry for people who only see the 'more serious' adult side of tickling...I know that you have a great time doing what your doing and far be it for me to knock it, I love a bit of erotic tickling in the bedroom as much as the next man but somehow for me you miss out on all the joy and spontanaeity that a good tickle fight brings....and there's no bigger adrenelin rush than when a girl or two or three (whoo hoo!!) grab ME and pull me down and start tickling me.....I love it !!!

 

[Gothmog]

I grew up with mild asperger's syndrome,so tickling was terrifying to me.I don't know why I like it now.

 

[ticklkitten]

I like to play.... and I always have. I'm someone who believes you can grow older and more mature but never really have to grow up! I still get as big a kick out of Disney movies as I did when I was just a child. So for me... I don't think tickling is about recapturing my youth because I'm not so sure I ever let that go...

 

[GoForTheLaugh]

So many good responses here!

I really like the responses by ticklish 9's, toyou444, daisycrazy5496, Battlecat, ticklkitten, and the rest. The stuff about being adults when necessary but not growing up really strikes an emotional chord in me. Thank you all. 🙂

Work: Nothing in my Fundamentalist past permitted me to break boundaries, although I did minor things in secret like listening to 70s punk rock and watching forbidden movies like A Clockwork Orange and Crimes of Passion.

And Gothmog: If this is indeed a kink we are born with, perhaps it did not manifest itself in you until you hit puberty. It is possible to be born with two opposing drives. There are a small number of people who have ADD (not paying enough attention) and OCD (paying too much attention) at the same time, for example. Biology can be weird.

For me, the childishness of tickling, the relief from stress, and the bonding it creates are its greatest appeal.

I just can't even imagine being tied down or doing that to another person. I was bullied horribly as a child, and the thought of acting out some of the things I see on this board makes me want to vomit. I have no right to tell others what to do, and I will defend consensual bondage as I have in the past simply because defending it is the right thing to do. I only learned about BDSM when I joined this board a few months ago, and I feel obliged to defend that, too. Still, only vanilla sex and very light consensual tickle play for me, though. I may have a few odd thoughts at times, but I choose not to act on them.

 

[TKL_M28_LI_NY]

Childishness?

I don't think it's being childish, or recapturing anything. But it's probably based in childhood - if there's where it started.