Since my interest in tickling isn't a fetish, I don't use that word to describe it. Let's look at the word:
fet·ish also fet·ich (ftsh, ftsh)
n.
1.An object that is believed to have magical or spiritual powers, especially such an object associated with animistic or shamanistic religious practices.
2.An object of unreasonably excessive attention or reverence: made a fetish of punctuality.
3.Something, such as a material object or a nonsexual part of the body, that arouses sexual desire and may become necessary for sexual gratification.
4.An abnormally obsessive preoccupation or attachment; a fixation.
It's not a fixation for me, nor is it necessary for my sexuality, nor do I objectify the behavior or the women with whom I play. Hence, it's not a fetish for me.
That's likely true for many here. It becomes true for more, after they've gained a familiarity with the acceptable tickling practices as seen in organized events like our gatherings, and as they find lovers that don't wig about the interest.
For me, largely, it's an interest. The closest to a psychological dysfunction that this interest comes would be called a paraphilia, by the definition in the DSM-IV, which is at every library in the country, in the psychology and/or psychiatry section.
We use the word "fetish" colloquially, and I suspect it's largely 'cause o' the volume of people here that have fetishistic interest in feet, armpits, or other specific parts of the body. Even then, it HAS to be obsessive, or you just have an additional interest.
I usually refer to it as a kink or interest, 'cause it's easy, inoffensive, and accurate enough for conversation. Note that being interested in bondage isn't a fetish unless it fits the same descriptions, and many have such an interest without having a fetish.
Dig? Good.
Peace,
dvnc
