knowing HOW to tickle

[playgirl]

knowing HOW to tickle is very important, particularly if you're using fingers. there's nothing worse than psyching yourself up for a good tickle torture only to be tickled by someone who seems clueless. as someone who's tickled others occasionally, i don't claim to be a master ler, but it seems like if you call yourself a ler, you should have some basic skills. i often ask for feedback, so i can become a better ler. when i've asked, i've received some great feedback.

what do you think?
* is it reasonable to expect your ler to know how to tickle and find your ticklish spots?
* if they're not very good, do you say something or just laugh half-heartedly?
* if you do say something when they're not very skilled, what do you say?

then the question becomes how does one become a skilled ler outside of attending a tickling class (there's one coming up on 10/21 in boston )?

can you learn good technique from watching clips or do you have to practice on someone who'll give you honest feedback?

 

[Skipadeedoodah]

I think it's unfair to say that someone is just overall a bad ler. Perhaps their touch and techniques are minimally effective for you, but that doesn't mean they wouldn't drive someone else crazy. I've played with people who don't push my buttons, but another lee would jump at the chance to play with because of how skilled they are at lering that particular individual.

If you're playing with someone who just isn't stirring your Kool-Aid, how you handle it is up to you. I prefer to never tell someone they're a bad ler, or they don't do alot for me - but that's because I play with friends, and I don't want to hurt their feelings. If you're playing with a stranger or someone you don't have much of a relationship with, maybe you'd be more comfortable with telling them. That's really up to you.

Regarding making somebody a skilled ler - if you plan on having repeat sessions with someone and you find that there are things you'd like them to do differently, communicating about it may be the best way. You could be direct and say, "This is what you do that I don't enjoy. Do more of this." You could be a little more coy and just mention in general things that drive you crazy/things that are totally ineffective and hope the ler picks up on it. Lastly, you could try and direct him/her with your body. I'm not saying fake your reactions, but try and show a difference between your laughter/body movement when they're not doing so hot and when they start to do something right. I would think that unless the ler is totally doing it for his own satisfaction, recognizing what works and what doesn't will help him to perfect the technique he uses with you.

Good luck!

 

[thetmfobserver]

I definitely agree with Skip in that certain tickle styles / techniques are more effective with some people than others. Also, repeated sessions usually mean better tickling, since the tickler has experience with your spots and reactions.

A good tickler, in my opinion, is someone who is a good "listener", meaning that they are in tune with the reactions of the lee, knowing what works well, and going back / adding to that during the session. Someone who only wants to tickle their particular way (I'm thinking of those who are IN LOVE with feather tickling) are not going to be as effective with most people as those who are flexible and improvisational.

As a ticklee, I think it depends on your comfort level. If you're content with just being brutally honest, go for it, but don't be surprised if you crush the tickler's spirits, thereby making them even suckier. I'd advise, again as Skip suggests, a more subtle approach. Let them know a couple things you really liked, and then be very expressive during a session when something goes right. If it's really a good spot or a good technique, you won't have to try hard.

 

[Sweed]

what do you think?
* is it reasonable to expect your ler to know how to tickle and find your ticklish spots?
* if they're not very good, do you say something or just laugh half-heartedly?
* if you do say something when they're not very skilled, what do you say?

can you learn good technique from watching clips or do you have to practice on someone who'll give you honest feedback?

I think it is reasonable, yeah. Or I mean, a 'ler doesn't have to know how to tickle, spots, etc from the BEGINNING (I mean, not many people does that xD), but a 'ler should be willing to find out your best spots and the best techniques to use on them.

I've never had a session with a 'ler who wasn't good. Maybe I'm just too ticklish? But if I had, I'd probably say something. Not "you're bad at this", but rather "you know, it does tickles more if you tickles more lightly" or something like that.

And I think you need to practice You can watch clips and see how they do too, but in the end I think you need to practice to get real good.

And of course, then there's some 'lers who just have a talent naturally. I met a 'ler before who had some way of wriggling his fingers, that made me loose it completely just by a single touch. But even if you're naturally talented, you need the interest to make it as ticklish for the 'lee as possible and the practise of actually tickling people, to become really good. At least that's what I believe.

 

[tkl-pen]

I think that tickling, like any other activity, is a skill that improves with experience and knowledge - anybody can tickle a girl for a few seconds and get a reaction or play some little tickle game with a girlfriend or a wife - but skills are developed through practice with various ticklees.

 

[IrishTickle]

Personally, I think there's no such thing as a good ler, only someone who understands a particular lee. There are several billion people on the earth and they all respond differently to different things. Trying to class a small amount because they're not doing things right for you is pointless. Not everything that works for you will work for everyone else.

The "good" ler will simply pay attention to how a lee reacts to certain things and if a lee wants to fully enjoy their experience, they shouldn't feel bad about telling the ler what is working and what isn't working.

If you just sit back and let a bad experience develope, you're just as much to blame, and possibly more so because you have to opportunity to say what is wrong and simply aren't.

 

[TickVix]

I think for the most part lers are expected to be somewhat experienced in the field of tickling. Unless they are just discoving this interest and haven't really had a chance to work on their tickling skills. Even the more experienced ones may not always know which areas are most ticklish on a new lee. I guess it's all about trial and error.

 

[playgirl]

I think it's unfair to say that someone is just overall a bad ler. Perhaps their touch and techniques are minimally effective for you, but that doesn't mean they wouldn't drive someone else crazy. I've played with people who don't push my buttons, but another lee would jump at the chance to play with because of how skilled they are at lering that particular individual.

I definitely agree with Skip in that certain tickle styles / techniques are more effective with some people than others. Also, repeated sessions usually mean better tickling, since the tickler has experience with your spots and reactions.

A good tickler, in my opinion, is someone who is a good "listener", meaning that they are in tune with the reactions of the lee, knowing what works well, and going back / adding to that during the session. Someone who only wants to tickle their particular way (I'm thinking of those who are IN LOVE with feather tickling) are not going to be as effective with most people as those who are flexible and improvisational.

touche!

i've been lucky that 99% of the tickling i've received has been good or excellent. only on rare occasions have i not been ticklish part of the time. in reading so many posts today, i think my questions were more rhetorical and for discussion than based on actual experience. i think i posted this after responding to the ideal ler thread which got my gears turning.

 

[Sandisk444]

since when have there been tickling classes???