PAIN AS PLEASURE I.
Why is impact play considered a kink in the first place? How can an act centered around pain be regarded as sexual? What exactly makes pain erotic? I have provided some of the answers in my previous articles, but then I did my kinkiest: I looked up scientific literature for further answers and new knowledge.
Interestingly, science paid little attention to these questions— or struggled to answer them—until quite recently. However, the article I’m about to summarize offers an exceptionally insightful and comprehensive perspective on this topic so I will just provide a summary.
***Cara R. Dunkley, Craig D. Henshaw, Saira K. Henshaw & Lori A. Brotto (2019). Physical Pain as Pleasure: A Theoretical Perspective, The Journal of Sex Research. DOI: 10.1080/00224499.2019.1605328***Building on our earlier work exploring pain processing and altered states of consciousness, this article advances our understanding by focusing on the overlap and dynamic interplay between the neurological and psychological systems that govern both pain and pleasure. Rather than treating these sensations as separate or opposing, it reveals that the human body’s systems of pain and pleasure partially overlap.
Das neunundvierzigste Bild seit die Dunkelheit herandämmerte 2K. Heppke (2023)Revisiting the Pain-Pleasure Dichotomy
Previous scientific research emphasized that pain perception is not merely a sensory response but shaped by cognitive appraisal, attention, and emotional state. Similarly, mindfulness and focused attention can alter pain experiences by enhancing top-down control and emotional regulation. This article extends that perspective by integrating how pleasure mechanisms co-create and interact with pain circuits, creating a blended experience rather than a simple binary (pain OR pleasure).
Key to this integration is the concept that the brain’s reward and limbic systems (traditionally associated with pleasure and motivation) can become engaged by nociceptive (painful) stimuli under specific contexts such as consensual BDSM transforming the subjective experience of pain into one of pleasure and reward.