Buttplugs-in the generic sense of an object to plug the butt-come in any shape or size you can imagine. If a distinction needs to be made between buttplugs and dildos, you could say that it's more a difference in what you do with the object than what it looks like or how it feels. Generally, a plug stays in place and a dildo moves; a plug is not necessarily phallic-looking; a dildo probably is. Dildos can be considered along with buttplugs in this discussion. Vaginal plugs are the same, but a wider variety of sizes and shapes can be used.

When inserting a plug, use lots of lube, and go slowly. Save twisting, grinding, and vigorous movement for later, after the muscles have relaxed. (Faster movement should, in theory, be reserved for a dildo anyway.) Most commercial buttplugs have a narrow part at the bottom where the sphincter muscle can hold it and keep it inside. Since a vagina has no sphincter muscle to hold a plug in, a plug must be stuffed in and held or strapped in.

Routine use of condoms on buttplugs is an easy safe practice to follow regularly, and it allows for sharing of toys among bottoms. Remember that while plugs can be shared (with a condom), lube should not be. A hand moving from a lube container to a person and then back to the lube container inevitably deposits things from the person to the lube container. Reserve a lube container for that bottom, or, better yet, a bottom should have his or her own lube container. Women should follow the dictum, "From vagina to butt, but not butt to vagina."

TYPES OF BUTTPLUGS AND VAGINAL PLUGS

Store-bought plastic, in various sizes (some with leather bottoms or holes for hooks in order to attach a strap that will hold the plug in); vibrating; plug with leather tail attached (great for playing horsy, especially with a horse-bit gag); corn-on-the-cob; vegetables; eggs, hard-boiled, cooled, and shelled; marshmallows, frozen or thawed; frozen grapes; anal beads of various sizes (a string of plastic beads of any size placed a few inches apart on a string); chain link, any size, the type that has no rough edges on the links.

PLUG SAFETY

The skin of the anus is thin and sensitive and therefore, easy to abrade. Use lots of lube and know the size of the bottom, knowing approximately what he or she can take. After play, eat food with bacterial culture, such as yogurt, which can assist in recovery of the normal rectal fauna, which ultimately aids in healing abrasion. Wash thoroughly any food or other biodegradable objects: grapes, for example, can create a yeast infection.

Practice carefully using anal/vaginal beads in order to learn how to avoid scraping the knot against skin.
Do not use anything made of wood, to protect against slivers and splinters. (Billy clubs should be plastic.)
To state the obvious: what goes in must come out. Therefore, the more manageable buttplugs are those with flanges at the bottom to keep the plug from sliding inside. Even buttplugs may disappear inside, however, and if this happens, the most important thing to do is not to panic-or even fear panic. Most lost objects can be retrieved easily if the bottom remains relaxed. If you can't reach it immediately, some soothing tea, mental relaxation exercises, massage of the lower back, or a warm bath may help. Moreover, the intestines may have stopped their normal movement, and eating a small amount to restart that movement may naturally (or with a little assistance) pass the object out. Do not use a laxative. Do not leave the object inside and assume it will eventually come out. If it doesn't come out after relaxation and movement of the intestines, or if the bottom cannot relax at all, a hospital visit is necessary. (Invasive surgery is usually not indicated, since physicians have access to muscle relaxants and appropriate tools for stretching the rectum and reaching inside to grasp an object.)
Spanking should be avoided if a buttplug is inserted.

It is not necessary to take a full enema before using a buttplug, which only goes a short way up the rectum. A quick, simple douche will suffice in most cases.
-- Terry F.

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