"When Sophie* woke up on the floor after having a seizure, it took a while before she could comprehend that it had been caused by a man strangling her during sex. I blacked out, my legs were kicking, I broke a glass, she says. At 19, it was the first and only time anything like that had happened to her. When I came to, I couldn't work out who he was, where I was, what was going on. And it was utterly terrifying."
"You create a narrative in your head where you wanted it or it's a good thing or it's OK, because you don't want to face the fact that somebody could have hurt you in that way, she says. She realises now she should have seen a doctor after the seizure, but the man persuaded me not to because he didn't want to get into trouble and I was worried about being shamed in some way."
"The first major study on strangulation during sex found that more than half of people under the age of 35 had experienced it and it was common among teenagers as young as 16 who had seen it in porn and on social media. Despite being a profoundly unsafe practice that carries the risk of brain injury even when there are no physical signs and death, many people still believed it could be done safely, the study found."
Sophie experienced a seizure after being strangled during sex and later realized she had been harmed despite initially accepting strangulation as normal. She did not seek medical care because the man persuaded her and she feared shame. A major study found that more than half of people under 35 had experienced strangulation during sex, and the practice is common among teenagers exposed to porn and social media. Strangulation can cause brain injury or death even without visible signs, yet many people mistakenly believe it can be done safely. Several women report repeated incidents and growing concern about violent pornography's impact on intimacy.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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