We are now seeing a very disturbing trend in this way around strangulation during sex, where the practice is becoming frighteningly normalized among younger people. Since then, two criminal justice delay reviews found that strangulation is now the second most common cause of stroke in women under 40. This increased statistic shows just how important it is to raise awareness about and prevent this risky and reckless behavior.
In 2021, Debby Herbenick conducted an exploratory study on the experiences of 24 participants aged 18 to 33. The research concluded that just some cases of strangulation can lead to unconsciousness within seconds and even death within minutes. In comparison, other impacts from such actions can be more insidious, creeping in weeks afterward. The duality of protected space and treacherous risk illuminates the great peril. Strangulation is worse than waterboarding. No kidding, strangulation is a much worse form of torture than waterboarding.
Fiona Mackenzie, who started the national campaign group We Can’t Consent to This (WCCTT) in late 2018. She is a national advocate against the normalization of strangulation during sex. The group aims to shed light on two critical issues: the men who utilize the ‘rough sex defense’ to justify the murder of women and the societal acceptance of strangulation as a sexual act. Mackenzie expresses the difficulty of tackling this concern in his post when he writes,
“The problem has always been that not one of the millions of people employed by the state will feel it is their job to enforce such a ban.” – Fiona Mackenzie
Clare McGlynn, a law professor at Durham University, is going to court in response to these increasing worries. She has joined Baroness Bertin to introduce Private Members Bills to criminalise pornography that would cover strangulation. McGlynn has claimed that previous legislation, particularly the Obscene Publications Act, has failed. Its overbroad and vague definition of what constitutes “obscene” material under its law doesn’t give anyone clear guidance.
The normalization of strangulation is compounded by a general public ignorance on this phenomenon. Hannah Bows, a criminal law professor at Durham Law School, points out that understanding of this issue has regressed significantly.
“I think it’s a really troubling sign that 50 years ago most people would probably know strangulation was an offence – just like we all know that stealing is illegal,” – Hannah Bows
Jane Meyrick, a chartered health psychologist at the University of the West of England, directs significant sexual health programming. She’s found that older generations are, for the most part, completely ignorant to the fact that strangulation is commonplace during sex. She notes,
“It’s about porn and the mainstreaming of illegal and violent tropes in porn practices.” – Jane Meyrick
Meyrick drives home how much more reachable this kind of content is, especially to younger people.
“It’s a click away on TikTok, it’s absolutely everywhere. I’ve had young people come to me in tears, young women saying, ‘I don’t want to be strangled’ and young men saying, ‘I don’t want to do it’ but both watch porn where it’s handed to them in an uncritical way and there’s an assumption that that’s what has to happen.” – Jane Meyrick
In light of these challenges, the UK government has announced an amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill aimed at criminalizing pornography depicting strangulation. This legislative development is a sign that the harms posed by this type of material are increasingly being acknowledged. Pipeline opponents such as Mackenzie have deep concerns about how well this new approach will work.
“If it wanted, the government could start tomorrow to make it uncommon for kids to see strangulation porn… Not a single site will fear prosecution.” – Fiona Mackenzie
The new research conducted by Herbenick and her team shows frightening differences in strangulation experiences among young women. A study involving 32 young women from a large midwestern university in the US found that those who had been strangled at least four times in the last month reported different experiences compared to those with no history of strangulation.
The 24-year-old woman who feared choking during sex told her story of a painful and traumatic experience. When she looked back on her experience, she said,
“I like to think I enjoyed my single 20s… I was an avid Hinge and Tinder user and I liked to think of myself as the ‘cool girl.’” – Lucy
Lucy noted a very competitive atmosphere among her classmates when it came to sexual conquests. They are under the gun to do not be seen as “vanilla.” This competitive spirit can cause people to take risks they wouldn’t take otherwise.
“Among my friends, there’s this competitiveness about not being boring, not being ‘vanilla’. I think it’s very prevalent for women my age, and no one wants to kink-shame anyone.” – Lucy
Meyrick cautions against any attempt to practice strangulation safely during sexual activity.
“There’s no safe way to do it, no safe quantity of blood or oxygen you can cut off from her brain for fun.” – Jane Meyrick