You’re running through the woods, you can hear their heavy footsteps thundering at your heels; welcome to the chase of Primal Play. Let out your wild side and learn what it is, what’s the appeal, and how you can tap into your primitive instincts.
What is Primal Play?
Primal Play encourages participants to explore their primitive instincts buried deep beneath everyday niceties. Think the paleo diet but for your sex life! It’s raw and can be a little rough but also mischievous and intimate.
There’s a wide variation of what primal looks like for those that enjoy it. For some, it’s enough to behave unfiltered during sex, like growling. For others, primal can involve a Dom/sub-Predator/prey dynamic and include chasing one another through the woods.
What’s the Appeal?
Primal play has a few things going for it. These break down to: release of inhibitions, adrenaline, and power exchange.
Inhibitions: Think of a time when you’ve lost yourself in the moment, like a heaving concert or a sweaty workout. Worries about what you look, sound, or smell like fall away. That’s primal. Grunting, moaning, growling, sex like it’s the stone age. You get to escape from normal life and connect with your ‘natural self’ in a way that’s way more fun than yoga!
Adrenaline: Blending fear and foreplay, primal play often features elements of rough sex and/or fear play. Scrapping with your partner or being chased releases adrenaline, provides a huge endorphin rush that heightens the feel-good hormones released during sex. Plus, the denial builds anticipation and makes surrender all the sweeter.
Power Exchange: Primal play upturns the standard Dom/sub relationship as it allows the sub to put up a fight (literally in some cases), making this perfect for bratty subs. Think about how animals put their mates through their paces. Doms have to prove they deserve their sub. Ultimately, it’s sexy to be wanted.
Is It Pet Play?
Due to its animalistic nature, primal play is often mistaken for pet play. Kinksters may combine primal with pet play, or vice versa; however, these two kinks are not the same thing.
Unlike pet play, primal isn’t necessarily about pretending to be animals. Popping in a Kinky Tail and taking on the role of a fox chasing down a bunny may add to the thrill, as well as help participants get out of their modern human mindset.
To put it simply: pet play is pretending to be animals, while primal play is acting in animalistic ways.
Unleash Your Inner Caveman
As primal is so physical, people can discover a taste for it during rough sex. If the feel of your partner pinning you down or biting your lover’s shoulder gets your motor going, primal could be for you.
So, how can you satisfy your savage lusts?
Safety First
Like all kinks, start with communication. Safewords, including nonverbal signals, are a must. Here are some points you might want to discuss, along with hard and soft limits:
- Does your partner want to feel hunted/like a hunter? Or is an ‘animals at play’ vibe their thing?
- How physical are you comfortable getting?
- Are there overpowering/fighting-back techniques to avoid?
Being open and honest about your desires BEFORE getting into a primal scene makes it all the easier to act on whatever cums naturally.
Set the Scene
You don’t have to wrestle your partner straight away; it’s as simple as making noise during sex. And, no, not like porn – proper, guttural sex noises! Moans, groans, whimpers, grunts, growls. It may feel a bit silly, but as long as you don’t sound like a dolphin clicking (don’t ask) you’re sure to hit your natural stride.
If you want to get physical, make some space and try wrestling, allowing the consenting sub/prey to resist as much as they want. A less physical alternative is to play a form of hide and seek. The more you play, the more you can explore elements like biting, marking, or taking the fun outside.
With primal you’re only limited by your imagination. Like to play with restraints, then playact taming the sub/prey using hemp rope or bondage tape. Want to roleplay as a marauding Viking chasing a lusty wench? Go for it! Breeding kink? Make it a mating ritual!
Due to its intuitive nature, primal can incorporate a lot of adjacent kinks. It’s no surprise that something that encourages exploring your bestial side can overlap with a monster fetish. However, primal is not a euphemism for CNC, nor is it an excuse to ignore BDSM best practices.
So, whether you like the idea of a raunchy romp through the forest or just want to let loose in the bedroom, embrace your wild side!
