THE GATE THEORY OF PAIN II: Early vs. delayed neural reactions
In the previous article we learned how pain is not a simple reaction, but a multimodal sensory experience. It gets even more complex, because pain unfolds in phases, and each has its own neural circuitry.
What happens when you twist your ankle? First comes a vague, general sense that “something is wrong”, followed by an immediate motor response to protect the area. After a few minutes, the pain becomes more localized and defined. The pain experience unfolds over time.
This sequence involves two types of nerve fibers:
A-delta fibers: Fast, myelinated neurons that deliver a sharp, immediate signal to alert the brain - this is your “first responder” system. It serves to protect the integrity of the body, i.e. you re-balance to avoid falling.
C-fibers: Slower, unmyelinated neurons that transmit a duller, longer-lasting signal. These also communicate with the brain to initiate the release of pain-mitigating neuropeptides like endorphins. Yes, this is what we want in impact play.
During flogging, the A-delta response can dominate early in a session - especially if pain is delivered quickly or with unexpected force - people often tell me about such experiences received at sex+ parties or privately, and they were simply, well, painful… In a well-prepared session, as time passes, C-fiber activity increases, triggering more endogenous pain relief and often leading to the "high" or trance-like state. This, in my oppinion, is a much better experience... This is also why spacing, pacing, rhythm and patience are so important. If you allow time for the C-fiber response to kick in, the subjective experience of pain is less sharp - and the body is more likely to respond with euphoria and “pain high”, rather than shutdown.
Part 3 of this article explains the curious paradox of why mitigating pain actually leads to a deeper altered state of consciousness and not the end of the pleasure.