Subspace: What Every Submissive Needs to Know About This Drug Like State

Want to know what subspace is? This article will walk you through this altered state of consciousness, why it happens (and feels so great!), how to get into subspace, dangers and risks to watch out for, and how to transition out of subspace to avoid subdrop.

What is subspace?

Subspace is the word given to the blissed out, transcendent, pleasurable, altered headspace that the submissive partner experiences during a BDSM scene. The trancelike state is a more euphoric, in the moment feeling rather than a dissociation or detachment from your being.

What does subspace feel like?

Subspace is different from person to person, although there are some similarities between people’s experiences.

Subs have described subspace to be:

• Blissed out dream state
• In a trance
• High or floaty
• Foggy or sleepy
• Melty sensations
• Euphoric
• Relaxed
• Incoherent

When a sub enters subspace they often have a higher pain tolerance, have difficulty speaking, have decreased mental clarity, and lose all sense of time.

Why does subspace happen?

If you’re not aware by now, I’m a complete nerd for anything to do with the brain - psychology, neuroscience, cognitive science - give it all to me. Subspace, like many other reactions to sexual arousal and stimulation, is a result of chemical reactions in your brain. Put simply, it’s a hormone cocktail of adrenaline, cortisol, endorphins, oxytocin, & dopamine.

While research is limited for this phenomenon, some studies have been undertaken. A 2009 study titled Hormonal changes and couple bonding in consensual sadomasochistic activity revealed that cortisol (the body’s primary stress hormone) levels rose significantly for participants who were bound, receiving stimulation, or following orders during consensual sadomasochistic (SM) play.

A 2016 study in the Psychology of Consciousness titled Consensual BDSM facilitates role-specific altered states of consciousness measured levels of cortisol and testosterone and had participants also completed a Stroop test, commonly used to assess cognitive flexibility. When comparing pre- and post-scene results, the bottoms in the scenes achieved a decrease in stress, an increase in sexual arousal, and extreme drop in cognitive ability on the Stroop test.

Another 2016 study titled Altered States of Consciousness during an Extreme Ritual revealed that cortisol was shown to remain elevated throughout an intense ritual scene like BDSM, but trails off after a scene ends.

Here’s how it works.

Your Dom has been delivering spankings to your butt turning it all sorts of shades of red. This causes your central nervous system to be on high alert, triggering your adrenal cortex to release stress hormones: adrenaline and cortisol. 

Adrenaline is responsible for the increased pain tolerance some people experience. It can also be responsible for some of the euphoria. 

Cortisol gets your body ready to repair tissues, which is useful both in a BDSM scene and in times of emergency, while suppressing non-essential systems such as the digestive system and the reproductive system. During this time, cortisol activates endorphins, which are classes of chemicals that can also induce a state of euphoria and reduce pain.

If cortisol is present during a time of trust and relaxation (as with most D/s dynamics where you would experience subspace) it can also contribute and boost the release of oxytocin which promotes positive emotions, attraction, trust, and bonding. If painful activities are combined with pleasurable, arousing ones such as orgasms, oxytocin can further be released.

Finally, stimulation of dopamine release can occur from certain types of pain, through orgasm, or anticipation and reward for your scene and being the best good girl there ever was. ;)

Can Doms experience a subspace like state?

Since Doms are not going through the same experience as you while they are topping, their altered consciousness state manifests itself differently than subspace. Generally, Dominants can feel a high from the sense of heightened power and control over their sub in a scene. Just as a scene delivers the sub a hormone cocktail, Dom’s get a flood of hormones that induce a flow state as described by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, a mental state in which a person is completely focused on a single task or activity.

Flow states are characterized by being:

• Challenging, but not so much that they are impossible
• Rewarding, meaning that a person gets a sense of pleasure or purpose from doing it
• In-depth, involving an investment of some time or energy to make progress
• Sense of control, where the person has mastery over their domain
• Loss of self-consciousness, where they are not worried about themselves but focused on external environment

Domspace functions as a complement to subspace: as one partner relishes the lack of control, the other takes pleasure in retaining it. 

How do I get into subspace?

For many subs, entering this space can be the ultimate goal in BDSM, with some even giving it higher importance than achieving orgasm. Just as subspace feels different for each sub, getting into subspace can be equally as diverse which can make it difficult to accomplish. Instead of making subspace the goal, it’s better to create an environment where it's more likely to happen and enjoy the play without worrying about if it happens or not. Just like an orgasm, if you focus too much on reaching subspace, you’re unlikely to get there. 

Here’s some ways you can increase your likelihood of reaching subspace:

• Mixing physical pain with pleasure: Because of the body’s automatic response to pain, using spanking, impact play, or other forms of pain inducing play can release adrenaline and endorphins. Mixing this with pleasurable activities can induce release of dopamine, oxytocin, and testosterone.
• Deep connection with the Dom: The more you feel safe and cared for by your Dom, the more you'll have the ability to set yourself free. As the physical sensations intensify, you  may start to experience a sense of emotional surrender and deeper submission, sense of trust and vulnerability.
• Psychological triggers: Hearing possessive phrases and intense dirty talk such as the praise degradation combo, or experiencing certain acts like a hand around your throat to feel your Dom’s sense of ownership over you.
• Focus on the present moment: Maintain awareness of the sensations and experiences in the present moment rather than their everyday worries or concerns. This can involve focusing on your breathing, the sensations of being touched or the sound of your Dominant's voice.

Subspace has levels and deepens gradually. The longer and more intense a scene gets over time, the deeper and more apparent subspace will feel.

Is subspace safe?

On the surface, feeling all of those wonderful hormones coursing through your body to feel the euphoric feeling of subspace is safe.

It’s important to note one thing, though: You can’t give consent while in subspace.

Just like any other altered state of consciousness, subspace can affect your judgment. While in subspace, you may agree or ask for things that are out of your “sober” comfort zone. 

For example, because of the adrenaline and cortisol levels, you will not have an accurate sense of your pain tolerance, which means you might want more than your body can physically handle. Although you may have a safeword, your mental facilities are impaired in subspace and you may not use or entirely forget you have a safeword, which could leave you physically sore or in emotional upheaval if a boundary is crossed.

Of course, the risk of these can be mitigated by prior negotiation of limits and a Dom you trust that will be present to read your body language, knows your limits, and respect your boundaries when you’re in a vulnerable state.

What is subdrop?

What goes up, eventually must come down. During the scene or intense BDSM play, your body went through a lot of hormonal fluctuations and is kind of freaking out about it. 

Your body wants to return to homeostasis, which means it not only needs to rid your system of the extra hormones, but also momentarily decrease production so it doesn’t overfill an already full cup. This could mean you may feel depressed, irritated, sensitive, confused, disoriented, inexplicably exhausted, or prone to crying during your post-session crash in the minutes, hours, or days following an intense scene.

Subspace aftercare

Aftercare is a post scene ritual that allows you to transition from the headspace you were in during the scene back to reality and help you mitigate or avoid the extreme lows of subdrop. 

Aftercare can look different for everyone because everyone has different needs. It could look like cuddling a partner, snuggling a warm blanket, eating or drinking something. Aftercare can also include treating any abrasions or bruises.  

However, there are some other helpful tips that can help for particularly transitioning out of the altered, trance-like state of subspace and leveling yourself out.

• Getting reassurance from your Dom that you’ve done well, that you’re safe, and that you’re protected can ease the vulnerability as you transition.
• Activating each of your five senses one at a time and orienting yourself to what is present in the environment around you can help ground you from floaty feelings. Doing this while taking a shower or going for a walk can help, too.
• Because subspace often inhibits logical thinking and prefrontal cortex activity, waking those parts of your brain back up can be done using activities like counting backwards from 100 that require more effort.

Whatever your aftercare looks like, it’s about creating a safe and comforting place to calm down and feel settled after such emotional highs.