Subspace is the state of mind that submissives enter to enjoy BDSM activities. When a submissive enters this mental space, the dom’s control feels intimate, sexual, and exciting. Hypnosis provides the most effective methods to help a sub develop their subspace and condition them to return to it on command. But to understand why and how this works, it’s necessary to develop a new definition of subspace.

Redefining Subspace

Subspace is often defined as “an altered state of consciousness that a sub can achieve through prolonged intense stimulation, pain/trauma play and multiple subsequent endorphin floods.” But that definition only works for S/m scenes. For lifestyle submission or D/s play without pain, we need a much better definition.

In my article on listening to erotic audio, I stated that listening to audio files enables us to share the desire and passion of the speaker. And many people who are into both D/s and erotic hypnosis want take this further — to feel the hypnotist to take total control of the their sexual arousal and pleasure. When the listener enters a state of mind that allows this to happen, they enter subspace.

This state of mind depends on mirror neurons in the listener’s brain; the system of neurons that enables us to feel sympathy and compassion. These neurons enable infants to develop emotional bonds with their parents. They also enable adults to communicate with infants before they develop language skills. When an adult expresses an emotion like happiness, the infant feels that emotion resonating within themself. When an infant feels this happiness, they realize (even without the knowing the words for it) that they’re connecting with that parent and feel a rush of pleasure.

As infants grow, they develop linguistic filters and self control, which inhibit the mirror neurons and dampen their emotions. This self control becomes an ingrained habit that prevents them from enjoying the full intensity of their own emotions. But subconscious memories of these early emotional connections remain. These memories can grow into the desire to feel a another person influence or control their sexual desires and pleasures, i.e., sexual submission.

A Tango in Subspace

$25 Subspace partly brings back some of this infant-like state of openness. So that, once again, a sub can feel themself resonate with their dominant’s emotions and enjoy the pleasure of feeling connected.

Subspace is a state of mind that enables the submissive to feel a deep emotional resonance with their dom. This enables the sub to feel their mind and body respond to their dom’s desires. This state occurs when mirror neurons in the submissive’s brain dominate their higher reasoning.

The Similarity between Subspace and Trance

Like subspace, trance is an altered state of consciousness. Trance is a state where words invoke mental images and physical sensations. A hypnotist and subject focus intensely on one another (just like a dom and sub). The hypnotist talks. The subject listens, seeing in his or her mind the images suggested by the hypnotist’s words. The intense focus between hypnotist and subject creates a deep psychological and emotional connection between them, which stimulates the subject’s mirror neurons and leads the subject to open themself emotionally.

Like subspace, trance brings back some of that infant-like openness. So the subject becomes receptive to the emotions of the hypnotist. This is why subjects feel a natural desire to please the hypnotist and go along with what is suggested. When the hypnotist is pleased, their pleasure gives the subject pleasure.

This emotional resonance is exactly what many doms and subs seek to build in their relationship. Especially doms and subs who engage in petplay.

The Advantages of Hypnosis

The Essence of a Slave

$25 The similarities between trance and subspace make hypnosis ideal for training submissives for subspace. Anyone can learn the basics of hypnosis in just a few minutes. There are thousands of books available and classes are offered all over the world. But it can be a challenge to enhance a sub’s emotional receptivity, and develop it into subspace.

To start, I recommend reading Professional hypnotism manual: Introducing physical and emotional suggestibility and sexuality. The author provides a detailed method for evaluating a subject’s emotional suggestibility. In essence, this involves testing their response to emotional suggestions, such as recalling and embracing feelings.

Once you’ve evaluated the submissive’s suggestibility, you can increase it. You can do this with suggestions to focus oh hearing their dom’s mood in their voice, or feeling it in their touch. Then suggest they relax their mind and allow their mind and body to respond to their dom’s desire. To hear how I accomplish this, you can listen to my submission training MP3s.

With practice and repetition, the sub can be conditioned to be more open to, aware of, and receptive to their dom’s desires. And this will help build the emotional resonance that provides the erotic foundation of rewarding, consensual D/s relationships.