If tickling were to become mainstream, would you come out?

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A few years ago, I had no issue discussing my love for feet and tickling with my girlfriends, but I was always cautious about letting it be known in the workplace or among casual friends. Fast forward to 2017, I remember noticing a lot of advertisements on Facebook that featured feet, openly aimed at attracting foot fetishists. I was surprised to see how many people openly admitted to having a foot fetish in the comments on those posts. Suddenly, people around me were also admitting to being foot fetish enthusiasts (although I still wouldn't admit it openly). To be honest, it was a bit annoying to me, some of them felt disingenuous, some of them felt that they were just posing. It seemed like having a foot fetish was becoming cooler or more accepted in some circles compared to years prior. However, tickling still remains a small niche, despite being part of a subculture for 40-50 years.

I believe that some movies and media have contributed to making foot fetish, uhm, more popular. Watching the tickle scenes in The Boys and in Anabelle made me wonder what if tickling became a mainstream trend? I know it's a long shot, and most likely never going to happen, but just for the sake of argument. Would you be willing to admit to the world that you’re into it? That you have been for decades?

 

[Captain Bad]

As a semi-terminally online sort, I've seen it coming. It's coming, and let me tell you why.

Tickling is, objectively, a hilarious kink. And all it's going to take is one little push from the algo to turn it into some kind of meme. I can already kind of predict how those memes will look.

I don't think it'll ever be as full-frontal zeitgeist as the foot fetish, but it'll have its moment. And then it won't seem so weird after that. Tickling kink is already a valuable asset for the entertainment industry, where a writer will try to get some BDSM content past the censors by using tickling instead of something like choking or whipping etc (see The Boys scene)

 

[Captain Bad]

Sorry, I totally misread the whole point of this thread.

Yes, yes I'd tell everyone.

 

[WickedTouch]

A few years ago, I had no issue discussing my love for feet and tickling with my girlfriends, but I was always cautious about letting it be known in the workplace or among casual friends. Fast forward to 2017, I remember noticing a lot of advertisements on Facebook that featured feet, openly aimed at attracting foot fetishists. I was surprised to see how many people openly admitted to having a foot fetish in the comments on those posts. Suddenly, people around me were also admitting to being foot fetish enthusiasts (although I still wouldn't admit it openly). To be honest, it was a bit annoying to me, some of them felt disingenuous, some of them felt that they were just posing. It seemed like having a foot fetish was becoming cooler or more accepted in some circles compared to years prior. However, tickling still remains a small niche, despite being part of a subculture for 40-50 years.

I believe that some movies and media have contributed to making foot fetish, uhm, more popular. Watching the tickle scenes in The Boys and in Anabelle made me wonder what if tickling became a mainstream trend? I know it's a long shot, and most likely never going to happen, but just for the sake of argument. Would you be willing to admit to the world that you’re into it? That you have been for decades?

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A few years ago, I had no issue discussing my love for feet and tickling with my girlfriends, but I was always cautious about letting it be known in the workplace or among casual friends. Fast forward to 2017, I remember noticing a lot of advertisements on Facebook that featured feet, openly aimed at attracting foot fetishists. I was surprised to see how many people openly admitted to having a foot fetish in the comments on those posts. Suddenly, people around me were also admitting to being foot fetish enthusiasts (although I still wouldn't admit it openly). To be honest, it was a bit annoying to me, some of them felt disingenuous, some of them felt that they were just posing. It seemed like having a foot fetish was becoming cooler or more accepted in some circles compared to years prior. However, tickling still remains a small niche, despite being part of a subculture for 40-50 years.

I believe that some movies and media have contributed to making foot fetish, uhm, more popular. Watching the tickle scenes in The Boys and in Anabelle made me wonder what if tickling became a mainstream trend? I know it's a long shot, and most likely never going to happen, but just for the sake of argument. Would you be willing to admit to the world that you’re into it? That you have been for decades?

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This question has really made me reflect on things from different angles, but when it comes down to it, no, I don’t think I would. There are other aspects of my sexuality that i don’t share with just any one in the same way that I don’t for tickling. It just doesn’t concern the nature of the type of relationship I want with many people in my personal life. If I wanted that kind of relationship with them and it was considered mainstream, I would treat sharing it with each individual person as an independent consideration just like I do now. The difference would probably be that forming individual connections over it would likely have less friction due to the more mainstream acceptance, but I’d still have to be interested in engaging in tickling with that person.

 

[Miss_Gigglish]

I might be sounding very ignorant about this. But what really does one have to do to 'come out' regarding feet fetish or tickling? I can understand that it is difficult to come out as gay or lesbian or bi. But let's say, if you are with a girl in a room, and you are regularly having 'fun' - will that girl really find it a problem if you tried to pleasure her feet? Or if you are going out with her, and you tickle her playfully at times, and tell her that you like to tickle her because you like how she laughs and it arouses you - will it really be a problem? Why does one have to be able to publicly announce this things or need them to be there in movies or TV shows to be able to talk about them? And what will change if you can comment publicly that you have a foot fetish or tickle fetish after it becoming mainstream? If you can make your romantic or sexual partner comfortable enough, they will be willing to explore without everyone else talking about it, isn't it?

 

[Bellylaughs]

Would I come out? Well, probably not. Mostly bc being a person with a vagina is an..... "Interesting" experience... In the way that a work shift becomes interesting after a coworker says the 'q' word. I don't need it to be more interesting than it already is lol!

In a world where everybody understands consent, I'll be away more likely to do that. But not everybody does, and not everybody cares to.

I mean sure, I like to cultivate a serious-ish, focused, and reliable bearing in my mundane life, but that wouldn't affect that much if I was continuing that bearing anyway. Mostly I'm just not trying to give more people an excuse to get all up in me like they think they can make me let them do things to me. Mainstream or not, I'm not "not out" for the reasons of shame or the like, I just don't want /more/ risk in my daily life.

 

[Miss_Gigglish]

Would I come out? Well, probably not. Mostly bc being a person with a vagina is an..... "Interesting" experience... In the way that a work shift becomes interesting after a coworker says the 'q' word. I don't need it to be more interesting than it already is lol!

In a world where everybody understands consent, I'll be away more likely to do that. But not everybody does, and not everybody cares to.

I mean sure, I like to cultivate a serious-ish, focused, and reliable bearing in my mundane life, but that wouldn't affect that much if I was continuing that bearing anyway. Mostly I'm just not trying to give more people an excuse to get all up in me like they think they can make me let them do things to me. Mainstream or not, I'm not "not out" for the reasons of shame or the like, I just don't want /more/ risk in my daily life.

What is the 'q' word that you are talking about (sorry not yet a full-time worker anywhere so won't know)? And I agree with you and I think I wrote something similar to you (though not in the same words) just 2 minutes before your reply.

 

[Bellylaughs]

Ah, it's "quiet"

 

[Miss_Gigglish]

Ah, it's "quiet"

LOL okay! Guess workplace is not different from a class then - there are class monitors there too 😀

 

[maniactickler]

No i would not. ill take my secret to my grave.

 

[maniactickler]

A few years ago, I had no issue discussing my love for feet and tickling with my girlfriends, but I was always cautious about letting it be known in the workplace or among casual friends. Fast forward to 2017, I remember noticing a lot of advertisements on Facebook that featured feet, openly aimed at attracting foot fetishists. I was surprised to see how many people openly admitted to having a foot fetish in the comments on those posts. Suddenly, people around me were also admitting to being foot fetish enthusiasts (although I still wouldn't admit it openly). To be honest, it was a bit annoying to me, some of them felt disingenuous, some of them felt that they were just posing. It seemed like having a foot fetish was becoming cooler or more accepted in some circles compared to years prior. However, tickling still remains a small niche, despite being part of a subculture for 40-50 years.

I believe that some movies and media have contributed to making foot fetish, uhm, more popular. Watching the tickle scenes in The Boys and in Anabelle made me wonder what if tickling became a mainstream trend? I know it's a long shot, and most likely never going to happen, but just for the sake of argument. Would you be willing to admit to the world that you’re into it? That you have been for decades?

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What movie is the bottom picture from?

 

[Comfort Eagle]

I think people have a very bizarre idea of a fetish "becoming mainstream" and what that means for them specifically. Foot fetish has arguably been "mainstream" for decades and you still hear constant stories of people living in constant terror of being outed over it.

Like are people just waiting for the day expressing a desire to be tied and tickled will be seen as normal and desirable as saying you want to get blown is? What is this moment everyone is waiting for supposed to look like? I say this as someone who already is relatively (some of you take this shit to bizarre lengths- nobodies parents need to know what gets them off...) open about my kinks. Frankly, I feel like just waiting for a day "it's mainstream" will actually lead to more frustration than finding a way for you, personally, to just try and make it "my fun little niche" to someone to try and get them to try it.

 

[MikeMenace]

If it's anywhere near as cringe as foot fetish becoming semi-mainstream, I'll pass.

 

[Toesheldback]

I can understand why genitals are sexual in nature. I don’t get girls boobs or asses, though. Do I appreciate a nice female rack? Yep. A tight ass? Definitely. But by themselves, they don’t get me aroused. Just like feet by themselves don’t get the majority of people aroused. Tickling feet (or ribs/upper body) to most people is like playfully squeezing a boob or slapping an ass is to me. Fun, but not a huge arousal in and of itself.

If by “coming out”, you mean announcing your fetish to people, I’d be ok with that, and I have in a limited way. But when people of your preferred gender KNOW that you like it (and correctly assume it turns you on) then your chances of being tickled or tickling someone are no longer playful, they’re you “using” them to get your jollies, and most people won’t like that.