Editing Gag (BDSM) (section)

{{Short description|Device used in sexual situations}}
{{About|gags used in BDSM||Gag}}
{{More citations needed|date=September 2008}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2020}}
[[File:Ballgag (cropped).jpg|thumb|A man with a ball gag]]
A '''gag''' is a device used in [[bondage (sexual)|sexual bondage]] and [[BDSM]] [[sexual roleplay|roleplay]]. Gags are usually associated with roleplays involving bondage, but that is not necessarily the case. The person who wears the gag is regarded as the [[bottom (BDSM)|submissive]] partner, while the other is regarded as the [[top (BDSM)|dominant]] one. People may wear gags for a variety of reasons. Some people derive [[erotic pleasure]] from a gag, either in a [[dominance and submission|submissive or dominant]] role. When combined with other physical restraints, the wearing of a gag can increase the wearer's sense of helplessness and anxiety level within a [[BDSM scene]] by rendering them unable to speak during sexual activity, which some people enjoy.

For some people, gags have connotations of [[punishment]] and control, and thus can be used as a form of [[humiliation (BDSM)|humiliation]]. To some, wearing a gag without restraints is still an act of humiliation, as is an open mouth gag. Some [[sexual fetishism|fetishists]] are sexually aroused by the sound gagged people make when they try to speak, or by seeing a person drool uncontrollably.

The type of gag used depends on the tastes of the parties and the type of roleplay scene, what is available at the time, and safety considerations. Some gags are designed to fill the mouth, while others are designed to provide access to the mouth by forcing the mouth open. Gags may be classified as over-the-mouth type, mouth stuffing type or mouth opening type.

When a person is [[sexual arousal|sexually aroused]] by gags, {{According to whom|it may be considered a [[paraphilia]]|date=December 2020}}. One specific gag paraphilia relates to video depictions in which the captor gags the [[damsel in distress]] to stop her screaming for help. Some people are sexually aroused by such imagery, even if there is no [[nudity]] or [[Human sexual activity|sexual act]] present, or even if the victim is only gagged but not restrained in any way.