Interesting thread, reverie35.

My first bdsm experiences besides self-bondage and self-discipline were with professional dommes. I would have liked to go to a male dom but at the time the only ones I could find were gay doms who did not accept female clients.

As to why I did it, it was mainly because I could. I had just moved out of my parents' home and started to enjoy the freedom of living on my own. I knew at the time that I wanted to take the next step in exploring my lifestyle but I did not want the emotional expense of risking a relationship over it. (Not that at the time I was great girlfriend material but that is another thread.) Also I wanted someone who would have real bdsm equipement and who knew what they were doing besides not being afraid of pushing my limits.

I discovered as I had suspected that older women (she was over 40 years ols and I was only 17), could be far more cruel than I could fantasize at that age. But the most unexpected discovery was sexual torture. I had hurt myself quite badly on my own and no domme ever got me to beg for mercy through corporal punishment but I had never subjected myself to forced sexual stimulation and being subjected to it just blew my mind! On my first session I was bound with legs spread, severely flogged and left to fry for almost an hour with a vibrators inserted in my pussy and clamped to my nipples. Oh dear, the memories!
That was the first of several sessions with a variety of dommes. After a while a feeling of emotional emptiness set in and I had to stop. Only after I found myself in a commited relationship did I feel the urge to learn more through professional sessions, but by then it had become an experience to share with my new boyfriend, who at the time was only begining to explore bdsm.