Fetish and BDSM Explained | What's the Difference?

Bondage, BDSM versus Fetish, D/s - all this can be quite confusing once you decide to dig deeper into the scene. But hey, don't worry about all that, here are the differences between fetish and BDSM explained so you can get just get on with enjoying them!

If we want to learn everything we need to know about fetishes and have BDSM explained to us properly, we can just read or watch 50 Shades of Grey, right? Err, No! In fact, the true meaning behind these cultures and their differences has a much deeper history. It differs from fetish to fetish and which concepts or tangible objects give a person sexual arousal. It can be an object, costume, texture, or very specific situation. There really is no limit to what can get someone's panties in a knot.

BDSM explained: what does it mean?

Bondage: physical but it can also be mental

Discipline: dominance and submission

Sadism: deriving sexual pleasure from inflicting ***

Masochism: gaining sexual pleasure from receiving ***

BDSM isn't limited to just a fetish, which often covers a wide range of situations. They can be as far-reaching as dendrophilia; sexual attraction to trees, or ursusagalmatophilia, the sexual desire for teddy bears. To be classified as a fetish, it has to be something that wouldn't 'commonly' arouse someone sexually. What can turn someone off completely, for example, a foot fetish, can provide very strong feelings of arousal in someone else.

It can be hard to find a safe, non-judgemental environment to explore yourself sexually, which is why communication and acceptance are so important in the kink community. Sometimes you find yourself turned on by the strangest things with no one to help deepen that discovery further.

BDSM explained: Communication, mutual consent and acceptance is vital.

Fetish and BDSM explained: what is the difference?

Whereas someone could indulge in a fetish personally and in private, BDSM usually includes at least one other person. It also doesn't always have to involve sex, and often doesn't. Mostly, it's about consenting people exploring each other's limits through constant communication and honesty. It's about being safe, sane and consensual.

BDSM is more than just a sexual activity performed on a whim, for most kinksters, it's a lifestyle. The roles of dominant and submissive are often carried through in everyday life, outside of the bedroom. For consenting partners who agree to engage in the practice, it can be a continuous role play for days, months, even years for some couples.

In today's world, it is considered perfectly natural and healthy to have one or more fetishes. Or to engage in even the simplest bondage activity. Exposure to the BDSM community has destroyed taboos surrounding this topic. More and more people are becoming comfortable exploring their own desires after having had BDSM explained and made senses of.

Most people have one or two things that turn them on in the bedroom that they're unlikely to share with friends, but there's no shame in having them. The best way to be comfortable with something is to talk about it. Chances are high that you're not the only one!

Did the concepts of fetish and BDSM explained in this article make sense to you? Do you have another way of defining them? Share all in the Fetish.com forum.