It can be easy to embrace the good and reject the bad in all aspects of life, this is especially true with intimacy and sexual experiences. Although acknowledging the bad can lead to some powerful self awareness and recognition, it can be difficult to confront these emotions. Rope can be meditative at times, bring peace and relaxation, it can be a profoundly positive experience for a lot of people, even during times of torture and stress. It can be in these moments particularly when we develop and learn more about ourselves than in those less stressful times. For this reason, it is possible to use SM and rope to facilitate playing with these emotions.

Society has taught a lot of us to cultivate positive feeling and repress negative emotions. As a result it can be common to feel guilty or ashamed of negative thoughts and feelings. Playing with this with SM can be an intense experience. I would recommend treating it with caution and consideration, just like any risk play.

I can only speak from my own personal experience, I find it difficult to hide myself in rope. I often hide behind my hair, close my eyes, disappear within myself, but I can never completely hide emotionally. Rope has a way of exposing my emotions, no matter how I try to conceal this part of me it is like I am ripped in half to my very centre and exposed for all to see. Fear of judgement, fear of myself and fear of the person I love seeing all of me, even in these repugnant moments.

To be accepted, loved while torn and being able to release in this way is very liberating. Being free to express and experience the full range of emotions during play, with someone you trust is a wonderful intense experience.

I have only played with negative emotions in a scene that were created in that scene. I have no experience of playing while starting on a negative emotion, that was either created through bad feeling with the person tying me or from an independent source. I have played with sadness, shame, guilt and anger, even disgust and they have been immensely powerful experiences. I was still processing some of those scenes days and sometimes weeks later.

Accepting and acknowledging the negative emotions can be very cathartic when you achieve a release from them. Dealing with them in a way where you can completely let go and release and using similar techniques to processing pain can help with that release.

These are only my thoughts based on my own experience. It will differ from person to person. I would love to hear other experiences and ideas around playing with negative emotions.