I was once ashamed to admit I’d been strangled nonconsensually during sex. Now I’m speaking up to save women’s lives | Hannah Ferguson
News Source
•Wed, 02 Sep 2026 15:00:28 GMT
📰 What Happened
Last week, a 16-year-old girl was found unresponsive in a home on Sydney's northern beaches. She was airlifted to hospital and died two days later. NSW police are investigating her death as the result of a sexual strangulation act. Officers were reportedly told the sex was consensual.
In this opinion piece, writer Hannah Ferguson shares her own experience. She says she was once strangled nonconsensually during sex. For a long time she was ashamed to admit it. She says she failed to call it out in a moment of uncertainty.
Ferguson says young men are being taught that acts with the potential to kill are erotic. She calls on the Albanese government to act urgently. She wants big tech regulated and pornography depicting strangulation criminalised.
🔍 The Backstory
Sexual strangulation is not a new conversation or phenomenon. For years, it was taboo to criticise its normalisation. Raising concerns was often framed as anti-kink. That has slowly started to change.
In 2024, Australian research confirmed how common the practice is. Sex experts and doctors have warned about the dangers for years. Strangulation cuts blood flow and oxygen to the brain. It can cause seizures, brain damage, and even death.
The death of the Sydney teenager has pushed the issue into the open. It has forced serious questions about consent and risk. It has also shone a light on how mainstream pornography normalises the act. Ferguson now speaks up to save other women's lives.
🎯 Why It Matters
This column gives voice to people who have been harmed in silence. It shows why choking must be taken seriously as a danger. It also pushes for laws that could change what young people see online.
Last week, a 16-year-old girl was found unresponsive in a home on Sydney's northern beaches. She was airlifted to hospital and died two days later. NSW police are investigating her death as the result of a sexual strangulation act. Officers were reportedly told the sex was consensual.
In this opinion piece, writer Hannah Ferguson shares her own experience. She says she was once strangled nonconsensually during sex. For a long time she was ashamed to admit it. She says she failed to call it out in a moment of uncertainty.
Ferguson says young men are being taught that acts with the potential to kill are erotic. She calls on the Albanese government to act urgently. She wants big tech regulated and pornography depicting strangulation criminalised.
Sexual strangulation is not a new conversation or phenomenon. For years, it was taboo to criticise its normalisation. Raising concerns was often framed as anti-kink. That has slowly started to change.
In 2024, Australian research confirmed how common the practice is. Sex experts and doctors have warned about the dangers for years. Strangulation cuts blood flow and oxygen to the brain. It can cause seizures, brain damage, and even death.
The death of the Sydney teenager has pushed the issue into the open. It has forced serious questions about consent and risk. It has also shone a light on how mainstream pornography normalises the act. Ferguson now speaks up to save other women's lives.
This column gives voice to people who have been harmed in silence. It shows why choking must be taken seriously as a danger. It also pushes for laws that could change what young people see online.