Our topic of the week was whether regular spankings can have a beneficial effect on depression symptoms.
Michael M: A few years back, I read an
article about how whipping therapy had been found to cure depression and addictive behaviour.
I can confirm that Doctor Speransky is a real person, as evidenced by Google searches in Russian scientific sectors. Secondly, a good caning, of 50-60 strokes on my bottom, does lift me out of a depressive mood and gives me fresh enthusiasm to get things done.
Maybe there should be Centres of Caning available for general medical and rehabilitation purposes and fewer psychologists and do-gooders on the drug scene. A series of thrashings would sort them out and give them a lift back into the real world.
PK: I have no idea what spanking could do for deep serious depression. I wish studies could be done on the subject. I do know that for the less serious down in the dumps blues that I sometimes have, it can work wonders. I know that regular spankings can keep me from falling into my type of depression.
CurtisG: I'm on depression medication. I don't know whether spanking has any effect on the underlying condition. But spanking makes me happy (and aroused).
Abby: For serious depression, probably not. But for the everyday blues, and the sometimes sadness that just seems to appear, it works for me.
S.N.M.: Anything enjoyable can help fight depression. It can't cure it, but it can make it more manageable. Spankings are enjoyable.
Hermione: Yes, spankings could help on a temporary basis, by taking the spankee out of reality and into a happy place for a brief while, provided the symptoms are not too severe. As others have said, it isn't a cure, but it's a lovely treatment; much nicer than pills, with better side effects.
Mikki: We have a bit of a different look on it in our house. My S struggles with depression. Some times in the year are harder than others due to holidays, weather, and life in general.
Before TTWD, for the first 15 years of our marriage, we both struggled with his depression. There are lots of things that changed when we chose to try this lifestyle. He is now not only on a couple of medications that really help, but spanking me really seems to help bring him to the place in our marriage that he really needs and wants to be, the Head of our Home.
No, I don't believe that spanking can cure depression, but like so many others here, I believe it can help anyone come to a better place in their head.
I'm so thankful for this lifestyle, and thankful for all of you who have gone before us and taught us how to do TTWD! ;o)
Mija: I think one of the problems we may have discussing this topic is that we use the word "depressed" or "depression" for feeling sad and down. I think spanking can help someone who's into spanking (like me) with times like that because it's something we enjoy.
However, if we're talking about depression the illness, then no, spanking doesn't help me. At those times, I feel fragile and disconnected from everything including myself. Spanking at those times reminds me that I'm not enjoying anything anymore. I feel unworthy of love and the spanking makes me feel not worth the effort. For clinical depression, what helps are drugs and therapy. Then, when I'm feeling better, spanking reminds me that life is good, fun and worth living.
Bobbie Jo: There actually has been at least one study that was done in Russia. What they did was test whether spanking would help in depression. They actually whipped the subjects and I have no idea how hard they did it, but as I recall, they found that it seemed to help about as much as medication.
I am just beginning in TTWD, though it has been there forever it seems. I have had only one, what I would call real adult spanking by someone who knows what they are doing. I was able to get a cathartic release and it was very helpful. I was very relaxed afterward. It was awesome. For about three days or so, I felt better.
Wouldn't it be great if, for those of us who have a problem with depression, could just get spanked every so often to get relief?
Clara: I've been struggling with depression for the past five years of my life. I'm on medication, in therapy, and trying to get better.
Spanking is the only thing 100% certain to help me escape the lows and the mood swings inherent in depression. I had my first spanking just because I was upset and needed one a few months ago. It's hard to exactly explain why it helps. It stops you feeling all numb, I suppose, and it helps you cry. And then there's the cuddles.
For me, it's just about getting out that urge to really hurt myself in a way that doesn't really hurt me. I'm not sure how you could get psychologists to test it, though, or doctors to prescribe it.
Thanks for this, Bonnie. This is a topic that's very close to my heart.
Molly: I feel very lucky to be able to say that I have never suffered from a serious depressive illness. Yes, I have down days and periods, but I am well aware that this is nothing like depression, specially long term depression.
I find that when I am grumpy, tense, down, or anxious, a spanking helps me to deal with those negative emotions. I always find myself much calmer and more centered afterward.
My only experience with depression was knowing someone else. I think that he was so far removed from the real person inside and so lost within the fear and self-loathing of his mind that I suspect any sort of physical stimula may have been met with total indifference.
I also think that everyone is individual. What works for one person does not always work for another, just as medications have different effects on different people.
Laurie: I think this can work in a couple of different ways. First, if you are someone who needs a release that manifests itself in a less healthy way (like cutting), I can see how spanking can be a substitute for that behavior (I'm not sure whether this situation is any healthier, but that wasn't the question).
For us spankos, there is definitely dopamine (type of endorphin associated with pleasure) release associated with said pleasurable activity. This can happen for a number of reasons including pleasure from pain, comfort and security, and arousal. Serotonin is also an endorphin. The theory behind depression is that people who are prone to it have less serotonin circulating in their brains. So endorphins are never a bad thing. That's why exercise, green tea and dark chocolate help too.
Anon #1: As a person who works in mental health, I do not believe that anything simple "cures" something as complex as a clinical depression. The disorder is caused by a variety of physiological and psycho-social triggers, as well as the presence in many cases of a genetic predisposition. For a true clinical depression, a combination of therapies is usually needed, including medications, cognitive therapy, new coping strategies, diet, exercise, and social interactions.
That said, things that are known to help with depressive symptoms include exercise that releases endorphins and keeping busy with activities that you enjoy. Spanking as an activity, can fit into both those categories.
I suspect that for those who enjoy spanking, it could be beneficial. However, I would think it would likely be more in a preventative way, when symptoms are just starting and remain mild, or when coming out the other side.
Lea: I know spanking can help put me in a better mood when I haven't been feeling the greatest. But for real clinical depression, I don't know. It seems to be much more complex. I suppose it depends on the person.
Ronnie: I have no idea, but I would think not for serious depression. For being down in the dumps or even mild depression, spanking could possibly help.
Sarah Thorne: Yes, I do think it can be a tool to help. I have had it used to help me before, and it does indeed do something to reset brain chemicals somehow.
Also, with someone like me who bottles everything up and has a very difficult time expressing emotion, the spankings help to release that, which in turn also helps me to feel calmer and more in control.
I don't believe that serious depression can be 'treated,' if you want to call it that, with spanking. I do think that spankings can help provide some kind of release valve in some instances, but serious chemical imbalances need to be treated with medical care.
So yes, overall, I think that spanking is useful in this regard, so long as the depression is mild/moderate, even if it is ongoing.
Kitty: I've never been seriously depressed, but I will say a spanking makes me feel VERY excited and happy!
I think the attitude of the spanker helps too. If Daddy didn't want to spank me, I wouldn't want one. I love his control over me.
DD: I had severe post-natal depression after the birth of our last child, who was a premmie. Having conned various medical professionals and their silly questionnaires, panic attacks eventually became too much. BBH and friends convinced me to get help.
We were not practicing DD then and although spankings helped for a few hours, they did nothing for the underlying problem.
Fast forward several years, the prozac-type drugs and therapy had helped enormously, but BBH later said it was like living with a shadow of his wife. It was as difficult getting off the medication as it had been going on them (all the same symptoms). Eventually, we went on a holiday where I couldn't find the medical kit when I unpacked. Panic mode ensued! I was already down to lowest level. We were in a hot climate and sunshine apparently helps. BBH added his own encouragement! The result was that three weeks later, I was off the drugs and I haven't taken them since!
I conclude that spanking may not help severe depression, but it can sure help with the aftermath.
Incidentally, the medical kit miraculously reappeared at the bottom of BBH's rucksack after the first mosquito bite!
Anon #2: An interesting
article that I think is somewhat relevant is titled, "I’m Gonna Need You to Fight Me On This: How Violent Sex Helped Ease My PTSD." The author got a lot of flack for it, but I related from a spanking perspective a LOT. And I think that PTSD and clinical depression can be closely related and both on the extreme end of the scale.
In my personal experience, I feel that spanking is extremely helpful in controlling depression and addictive behaviors just as Michael M. described in his post about the Russian study.
Spanking helps me to feel incredibly better, if only for a limited time - hours or days. The combination of the endorphins, the demonstration that someone cares enough to indulge me, and the fact that a spanking forces me to live in the moment instead of getting lost in destructive thought or action are all important I think.
But I pretty much always want to be spanked no matter whether I feel bad or great because I've always been a hopeless spanko. :)
Emily: I haven't been depressed enough to want to off myself or someone else, but I've had some run-ins with the bitch. Since I was 12, I can remember crying for what seemed like weeks. I go through phases often where I don't want to get out of bed or do anything. I tend to doubt my self-worth and abilities, and have been to the point where I felt I could leave my family and start "fresh." I was a hot mess from ages 12 to 26. At 16, I was put on medication by a "medical professional." I took myself off of it when the crying and sleepless nights got worse.
I don't always feel 100%, but having come out to my husband about my spanking needs has made me feel better. The few times that he spanked me before he deployed put me in such a good mindset. When I start feeling really bad while he's gone, I exercise or read stories he sends me about spanking. I can't even begin to describe how much better things are for me. I'm sure it's just as much spanking as it is no longer hiding my self from my husband that helps me feel this way. I'm a big fan of "life is what you make it," and I'm driven to make my life a healthy life with a warm bottom.
Dr. Ken: No, I don't believe that. It might help if you're depressed about not being spanked enough, but clinical depression? No. I don't believe spanking can cure cancer, diabetes, or unclog your arteries either.
But that doesn't mean I'm gonna stop doing it, mind you...
Bonnie: I generally have an opinion about everything, but this question is outside of my experience. I am fortunate to live without this affliction. I adore a good spanking, but I have no idea whether it can help people with depression.
It was really interesting to read all of the different perspectives.
I love when we get a broad range of viewpoints, especially when they reflect personal experience. I don't think we definitively resolved the question, but there's a lot of great information here. Thank you all!
