Cock and Ball Torture, or CBT for short, is a fetish that revolves around inflicting pain on male genitalia.

There are degrees of torture used from simple light bondage, to seeing how much dangling weight they can handle, to violent abuse of the tissues.

There are several different methods of CBT, including:

• Ball-busting
• Ball-crushing
• Ball-stretching
  

  CBT with clothespins
  Photo credit: Michael Fitzroy – Source – CC license

• Genital bondage
• Needle-play
• Piercing
• Urethral play
• In extreme cases, consensual Castration 

It’s uncertain when cock and ball torture became something sexualized instead of just a method of torture. After all, how better to get a prisoner to confess? Some modern CBT toys, such as spike-lined chastity devices, even bear a strong resemblance to their medieval torture counterparts.

It is known that the Marquis de Sade wrote of activities that fall under the CBT umbrella during the late 1700’s, including more extreme acts of dismemberment, where the emphasis was on the sexual pleasure obtained by those inflicting wounds. While his writings were considered quite extreme in his era (and ours!) it at least shows us that the idea of torture-for-play was conceptualized by then.

While there don’t seem to be any readily-available papers from psychologists about why kinksters enjoy cock and ball torture in particular, there seems to be a general assumption that it’s rooted in power exchange. Physically and psychologically, men are very attached to their genitals. Allowing another person to use them, even to the point of harm infliction, might be considered by some to be an ultimate act of submission. A literal surrender of manhood.

CBT may also be a big draw to sadists and masochists, since the tissues of the genitalia are extremely sensitive to the slightest bit of force. It’s a very easy place to gain maximum pain with minimal force.

Do keep in mind that there are several safety concerns with CBT. Restriction of blood flow from bondage can cause tissue damage in the genitals. The penis can break. Testicles can be irreparably fractured or ruptured with enough force. Have fun, but make sure to play safe when dealing with such a delicate part of the body.

As of this writing, more than 23,000 kinksters on FetLife.com identify as interested in cock and ball torture.