# Bruising > Bruising is broken capillaries under the skin. How long it lasts, what colour tells you, and which bruises mean the strokes were landing in the wrong place. - Canonical URL: https://consensualspanking.co.uk/glossary/bruising/ - Section: A–Z - Updated: November 2026 (2026-11-01) - Audience: consenting adults over 18 only. Everything on this site concerns consenting adults over 18. Blood where it should not be, under skin that is otherwise intact. Common after heavier play, entirely manageable, and a much better source of information about a top than most people realise. --- ## In short - A bruise is bleeding from small vessels under unbroken skin, caused by blunt force. - Typical timeline: dark within a day, green or yellow around day four to six, gone by day ten to fourteen. - Bruising on the tailbone, hip bones, kidneys or backs of the thighs means the aim was wrong, not that the session was hard. - Light bruising generally sits below actual bodily harm, but heavy or lasting bruising can meet it, and under *R v Brown* [1993] consent is not a defence to that in England and Wales. ## What it means Small blood vessels under the skin break under blunt force and leak. The skin itself stays intact, which is what separates a bruise from a broken skin injury, and the colour changes over the following fortnight as the body clears the blood away. The full treatment is on [marks and bruising](https://consensualspanking.co.uk/guide/marks-and-bruising/). Different implements bruise differently. Thuddy, heavy things such as a wooden paddle or a thick strap deposit force deep and produce broad, diffuse bruising. A cane does something else: a narrow raised line, a [welt](https://consensualspanking.co.uk/glossary/welt/), sometimes with a bruised edge either side of it. Hands rarely bruise at all unless the session was very long. ## In practice What the colour tells you is mostly just how long ago it happened. Red at first, darkening to purple over the first day, then green and yellow from around day four to six as the pigment breaks down. Sitting down is uncomfortable for two or three days after anything heavy. A long train journey on the Monday after is a genuine planning consideration and I am not being flippant. Cold in the first few hours reduces how much comes up. Warmth after the first day helps clear it. Arnica has enthusiasts and thin evidence; it will not hurt you. If you bruise easily, tell a top before rather than after, because it changes what implement they should reach for. Where a bruise is matters far more than how dark it is. The lower curve of the buttocks is muscle over fat and takes this well. The tailbone, the top of the hip bones, the small of the back over the kidneys, and the backs of the thighs are not, and bruising there is a technique problem. See [where it is safe to strike](https://consensualspanking.co.uk/guide/where-it-is-safe-to-strike/). ## What people get wrong Treating bruising as a scoreboard is the error I see most, usually in people fairly new to it. A dark bruise means force was delivered into tissue. It does not mean the session was better, and chasing marks is how people end up with an injury they have to explain at work. Seek medical advice for bruising that is unusually painful, swollen and firm rather than tender, for numbness or weakness in a leg, or for bruising that appears after very little force. You do not have to explain how it happened, but you will get better care if you do, and doctors have seen everything. > ## If the marks were not agreed > > > > If you have marks you did not consent to, or you agreed under pressure, that is not a technique problem. The National Domestic Abuse Helpline is 0808 2000 247, free and 24 hours. The Men's Advice Line is 0808 8010 327. The Samaritans are on 116 123 at any hour. ## Read next - [Marks and bruising: the full page](https://consensualspanking.co.uk/guide/marks-and-bruising/) - [Marks](https://consensualspanking.co.uk/glossary/marks/) - [Welt](https://consensualspanking.co.uk/glossary/welt/) - [Where it is safe to strike](https://consensualspanking.co.uk/guide/where-it-is-safe-to-strike/) ## Sources 1. *R v Brown* [1993] UKHL 19. [bailii.org](https://www.bailii.org/uk/cases/UKHL/1993/19.html) > **Not legal advice.** Where this page mentions the law, it is general information written from an England and Wales position unless it says otherwise, and it is not legal advice. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own law. If your own legal position matters, speak to a solicitor. ## Common questions ### What colours does a spanking bruise go as it heals? A typical bruise from a paddle or a heavy strap comes up within a few hours, darkens over the first day, turns green or yellow around day four to six and has usually gone by day ten to fourteen. Deeper bruising from a hard implement on a thin person can take three weeks. Cold in the first day and gentle warmth afterwards make a modest difference. ### Is bruising normal after a spanking? Light bruising is common after heavier sessions and is not in itself a sign anything went wrong, but it is not a target either. Bruising over the tailbone, the hip bones, the kidneys or the backs of the thighs is a sign the strokes were landing in the wrong place, and repeated deep bruising in the same spot deserves a rethink rather than a plaster.