Category: (Sado)Masochism
Subcategory: Types

Branding

Branding creates permanent marks on the skin using heated metal, typically shaped into symbols or designs. Methods include traditional fire-heated metal brands, electrocautery units, or strike branding where the hot metal makes brief contact with skin. The brand is pressed against or struck onto the skin for a fraction of a second to burn through the dermis.

The physical sensation is an intense, searing pain at the moment of application, followed by duller burning that gradually subsides. The immediate result is a serious third-degree burn that develops into scar tissue over weeks of healing. The resulting mark is permanent and typically raised or indented depending on the technique. This advanced practice requires significant experience, understanding of burn physiology, and sterile procedure to manage healing. Most brands are relatively small in size and placed on fleshy areas that move minimally during healing.

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This is a description of an activity in the BDSM checklist (also known as a 'kink list'). Want to discover what (more) kinks you might have? Maybe share them with a partner? Start the checklist!

About the category (Sado)Masochism

Sadomasochism involves the consensual exchange of sensation that many would find painful or intense in non-erotic contexts. This spectrum encompasses both the giving (sadism) and receiving (masochism) of such sensations, creating experiences where pain, intensity, and pleasure become interwoven through deliberate and controlled application.

People enjoy sadomasochistic activities for diverse reasons: the intense endorphin rush that creates natural highs, the intimate trust required between partners, the transformation of pain into pleasure through context and arousal, and the cathartic release many experience through intense sensation. Rather than being about suffering, well-executed SM play creates unique states of consciousness and connection that many practitioners find impossible to access through other means, offering profound physical and psychological experiences when practiced with skill and care.



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