My Newfound Freedom in Play and Punishment

So I recently started dating this girl who’s in her early twenties. She’s really into DDLG/kink stuff, which was a shock at first but I quickly grew to enjoy it. We’ve been exploring the dynamics for about two months now, and everything has been super consensual. She's really open about wanting to push boundaries as we go along, but I've held back out of respect and just being cautious with her since she’s new to this too. One day last week, after what had been a really tense couple of days due to work stress on my end, we decided to try something different. She suggested that I take the dominant role in our play session this time instead of her usual top position. The idea excited me but also made me nervous as it was quite the shift for us. We started off with some light play, nothing too serious, tying up my hands and blindfolding myself while she teased me a bit verbally. That escalated into physical contact: spanking, caning with a small paddle (not harshly), and then we moved onto more intimate things like bondage in positions where I was vulnerable. The part that really gets to me was when she decided to punish me for my recent stress at work, not because I did anything wrong per se, but just as an outlet. She had this idea that by pretending to scold me like a child, it would make the roleplay more immersive and exciting. It involved spanking, verbal humiliation (calling me names), and making me do a lap dance for her in front of us both. I have to admit, it was surprisingly liberating once I got over my initial hesitation. The physical sensations mixed with the mental aspect of being disciplined felt cathartic, like an emotional purge following days of bottled-up frustration. When she finally let me off the hook and we came together afterwards, it was almost like a weight had been lifted from me. I’ve never really talked about this kind of stuff before and my initial anxiety made me question whether I should even try something so out there with someone else. But honestly? It felt amazing to just let go and dive into that space we created together. The relief and connection after it was unlike anything else in our relationship, and it's helped me feel more secure about my identity as a trans man exploring new aspects of my sexuality. So yeah, I don't know if this is something we'll continue doing regularly, but for now I'm just going to enjoy the ride. The exploration has been exciting, especially since it’s allowed me to be vulnerable and playful in ways that felt impossible before.