We all have at least one of them: a special something—which can be anything from an item of clothing, a smell, a taste, or a specific body part—that arouses us on a basic, primordial level.
Though technically fetishes refer to when these special somethings must be present for sexual satisfaction, the popular definition is that, while this can occasionally be true, many enjoy them just to . . . well, enjoy as part of what turns them on.
And when you talk fetishes, the one at the top typically lies at the bottom of most people’s bodies.
But what exactly is foot fetishism—also called foot worship?
Not only that but what kinds of foot play are there, what are the prevailing thoughts regarding its origins, and—if it tickles your fancy as well as your toes—how do you bring it up to your partner?
Boots are made for walking
The other thing about fetishes, again using the common usage of the term, is that even after narrowing them down to a single element, like a body part, there’s often still a tremendously expansive world of what this excitement might involve play-wise.
And foot worship is a perfect example. As a quickie sample of its variations, some enjoy bare feet as a whole, while others get aroused by certain anatomical specifics, like the shape, feel, and smell of toes.
For some it’s about what covers the feet, running from black leather boots to haute couture stiletto heels. On the first, just look at the BDSM community:
Bootblacking plays a major role in the leather subculture, especially in Leather BDSM competitions.
There are also those who find pleasure in the aesthetics: the look over the feel of feet. The site of a fresh pedicure or lacy underwear dangling from somebody’s toes could be a big turn on.
For those of you who prefer function over form, play might involve:
- receiving feet-focused corporal punishment (with things like canes and floggers)
- being commanded to paint a dominant’s nails
- servicing toes orally
- trodden on — with or without boots or heels, to name only a few.
I could go on and on, but hopefully, I’ve made my point. There’s no limit to what foot worship can involve. That is — though it’s not necessarily a kink-thing, it remains a goal to live by— if it adheres to the three rules of BDSM: that everything must be safe, sane, and always consensual.
Getting to the foot of the matter
But where does this arousing passion for this body part come from? Hate to break it to you, but though theories abound researchers haven’t, as yet. Managed to pin anything down.
In one corner, there’s the nature over nurture, that foot worship is a sexual orientation. On the other side, there’s the opposite: that early experiences, imprint it as pleasurable.
I particularly remember neuroscientist V. S. Ramachandran’s hypothesis put forth in “Phantoms in the Brain.” The hypothesis states that due to the region of the brain involving sexual pleasure being close to where foot sensations are processed, a bleed-over between the two might be the case.
This article from Men’s Health does a pretty good job covering a good percentage of these theories, with the added benefit of sharing alternative ways people enjoy their own or other people’s feet.
Though we don’t yet have an explanation, I have no trouble saying that what there is at least one iron-clad certainty about these and all other fetishes that will ever be:
If your play is with another person, you both must stick to the BDSM rules of Safe, Sane, and Consensual.
Beyond that, unless it affects your ability to function or is the source of negative emotions like anxiety or depression, then however and whatever you like is unequivocally healthy.
And even if it does result in bad feelings, it doesn’t mean you’re bad or broken for having them: just that you might consider assistant from a qualified therapist to overcome this negativity, and then possibly accept who you are and what you enjoy.