Drop

A low mood or exhaustion that can follow an intense rope or BDSM scene, either right away or days later, and that can affect the person tied as well as the rigger.

Rope glossaries list this simply as drop. Shibari Study describes an emotional or mental low after an intense experience, ties it to falling endorphin levels, and notes that it can come at once or later and affect tops and bottoms alike. Anatomie Studio describes a low point after an adrenaline-filled scene, sometimes with guilt, and names it as one reason aftercare matters. Researchers Richard Sprott and Anna Randall (2016) group sub drop, top drop, event drop and scene drop under the umbrella “x-drop.” They point out that the hormonal explanations have not been tested, and propose that a drop arriving days after a scene may be a psychological reaction to loss, similar to grief, rather than a chemical comedown.

Sources

  1. Glossary — Shibari Study
  2. Shibari terminology: a guide to rope bondage vocabulary — Anatomie Studio (Kink and Cuddles)
  3. Black and blues: sub drop, top drop, event drop and scene drop — Journal of Positive Sexuality (Sprott and Randall, 2016)