Risk Awareness

The risk for getting injured in rope applies to "traditional" partnered tying as well as to self-tying, of course. However, the dangers involved in self-bondage are a bit different than for partnered bondage, and there are some unique safety considerations. Even if all possible safety precautions are taken, this is never a risk-free activity! Knowing some of the potential pitfalls can help you mitigate the dangers and practice in a risk aware manner. There have been many fatalities caused by self-bondage – you can read some case reports here. The overwhelming risk factor in those fatal cases was being alone in bondage, which is why I strongly advocate for always having a spotter and never self-tying alone.

All the basic dangers of partnered bondage (including fainting, fall, rope marks, nerve damage, etc) also apply to self-suspension. Nerve damage is especially important to learn about – lots more details on that topic can be found at this site! I have given myself nerve damage in a hip harness self-suspension – these types of injuries can definitely happen no matter how experienced you are or how many safety measures you have in place.

Since many people come to self-suspension with a background in partnered suspension, comparing the safety profile of the two provides a relative context to start building risk awareness for self-suspension. With that in mind, consider the following ways in which self-suspension is more (and in some cases, less) risky than "traditional" partnered bondage:

Some general factors that can make self-suspension riskier than partnered suspension (and some ideas on how can we control for those) include: 

• Being alone (control for this by having a spotter)
• Running out of energy, especially grip strength (control for this by learning your body and limits, and by having a spotter)
• Dynamic rigs and movement that can impose shock loads on suspension points/frames (control for this by always checking your hard point and applying careful scrutiny from anything you plan to hang from)
• Tying “blind” behind your back or where you can’t clearly see knots (control for this by practicing lots!)
• Getting in rope space and losing body awareness and/or losing the ability to manage your rope (control for this with mindfulness practice and by having a spotter)

Some general factors that can make self-suspension in some ways lower risk than partnered suspension include:

• There is only one ego involved! Injury in partnered tying can come from bottoms wanting to “tough it out” for their top, or prove how badass they are as a bottom. It can also (unfortunately) come from riggers who feel they “know better” than their bottom and don’t listen to feedback about the bottom’s experience and signs of injury, or who are more concerned with putting on a show than with their bottom’s well-being. Certainly self-suspenders have ego, too, but cutting down the amount of ego in a given bondage scene tends to increase safety!
• Knowing your own body and being able to seamlessly integrate this knowledge into the bondage—this includes factors such as individual rope placement preferences, position tolerance, etc.
• Instant feedback if anything is wrong or needs to be adjusted.
• Avoidance of load bearing rope on high risk areas, most notably the upper arms. Certainly it is possible to do a self-suspension that loads on the arms, but it's uncommon, and nowhere close to the ubiquitousness of TK/box ties in partnered suspensions.
• Dynamic movement with active engagement of muscles, which can decrease the risk of focal nerve compression.
• Seamless anticipation of your own transitions, with body and rope working as one.

Drops

Drops are another major self-suspension risk. Drops are relatively rare, but can have devastating results. Some precautions you can take to decrease the odds of a dangerous self-drop:

• When you’re learning (or experimenting with something new), hang your hard point very low – being an inch off the ground totally counts as a suspension!

• Keep careful, conscious track of your critical line (this is the line that’s keeping your head from hitting the ground), and don’t adjust or remove one critical line before completely securing another. For example, securely tie off a chest harness, then raise and securely tie off the hips, then disconnect the chest for an inversion… and securely tie off the chest again before lowering the hips. A spotter can also help track this. Adjusting critical lines on the fly is a more advanced and risky move, so work your way up to it.

• Use rated rope for your uplines and properly rated hardware.

• Assess your hardpoint and use your own judgement regarding its safety.

• Use a crash pad, or at least a mat. I have a crash pad like the ones climbers use for bouldering. It was a bit expensive, but I’ve dropped myself onto it once and can assure you that the investment was totally worthwhile.

• Always self-suspend with a knowledgeable spotter who can double check the safety of your tie-offs, transitions, etc.