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Source: Examinerlive.co.uk

UK/BIRMINGHAM – The coronavirus lockdown has been a financial disaster for £150-an-hour dominatrix Mistress Lagertha.

Most of her income is generated from one-on-one sessions which she decided to suspend shortly before the official ‘lockdown’ advice was issued.

And, despite her best efforts, she hasn’t been able to generate much money by doing more online work.

Mistress Lagertha – named after a Viking warrior – was earning up to £400 a month before the lockdown but now her income is down to just a few pounds from video sales and phone line work.

“This has hit me really badly,” she said.

“Clients have cancelled visits but the worst part of it, as someone who lives alone, is being on your own in lockdown. It is no fun at all.”

The 40-year-old dominatrix, who did not want to reveal her real name, had been seeing around four clients a month until the lockdown.

Now, she only sees one client – a ‘sub’ (submissive male) – who buys her food from the supermarket and drops it off on her doorstep.

“I started staying in one week before the lockdown became official because I am in one of the vulnerable categories as I have asthma and my immune system is compromised.

“Because I live alone, it has been very difficult. Normally people visit me but that has been taken away.”

Her income has dropped and she won’t be able to manage financially for much longer.

“I am self-employed and I don’t have any savings. I have previously applied for Universal Credit but did not qualify so I am hesitant to apply for it now,” she said.

“My income was between £200 and £400 per month with phone line work as well. Since the lockdown started I have earned £100 – that was for a video cam. Other nights I have earned nothing.

“Now that everybody has moved to online working, everyone has had their income watered down.”

Mistress Lagertha, who is single and based near Birmingham, with clients in Bradford and Manchester, is very fond of her clients and counts some as her friends.

“Most of my clients see me on a regular basis and are friends. They are missing my company and, on a physical level, they are not getting their kinks indulged,” she said.

But working online and doing chatlines are not as lucrative as some may think, she says.

“I made 17 dollars from two chats,” she added. “I can also sell videos but I recently found someone had stolen my content and was giving it away for free. In February I earned 95 dollars for videos and now I can only do solo videos.”

Mistress Lagertha had just began to make her name for herself as a dominatrix when the coronavirus crisis arrived.

“It has taken me three years to get to this point. When the lockdown started I had just got back from Spain which was the first holiday paid for by a ‘sub’.”

Since then she has been unable to see regular clients including a man who flies in from Germany, a self-employed carpenter and a businessman.

“Financially, I am OK for four weeks. I will have to make a decision soon whether I can afford to isolate or go back to work as a dominatrix. Some sex workers cannot afford to isolate.”

And, she says, clients are feeling desperate too.

“They are getting desperate (to see me). They are getting pushy. A few have asked to see me. Some still need to get their fix of escapism which I provide them with.

“Doing something over a video camera isn’t enough.”

She added: “In the last week I have had three people contact me and I can tell they are desperate. I am getting messages from people saying they can’t cope and they are struggling.

“People who are single can feel as lonely and as isolated as I feel. Personally, I am missing the contact with a lot of them.

“They help to keep me mentally happy. They are loyal, they are a distraction and they provide friendship. And they help pay my bills.

“What I do is part of who I am. It (lockdown) is almost like having an arm chopped off. I do what I do for the love of it.

“But now I am at the point of begging clients for money. Some have paid for sessions in advance but some cannot afford to pay for sessions as they have had their wages cut.”