Today is the launch of Sexual Health Week, an annual awareness event that sexual health charity FPA has run since 1997.
The theme this year is pleasure and wellbeing, which is not always associated with sexual health in a clinical sense.
We seem to forget that most sex takes place for reasons of pleasure, intimacy and desire, rather than just reproduction. As well as being pleasurable, an active sex life is a good form of exercise, reduces stress, aids relaxation and sleep, is a good pain reliever and keeps the prostate gland and genitals healthy.
During the week we’ll be focusing on five different areas which we think need extra special attention.
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Education
It is well documented how patchy sex and relationships education provision is in schools around the UK. Young people have said curriculum coverage tends to be too little, too late and too biological, and often there is a focus on negative messages – how not to get pregnant, or how to prevent sexually transmitted infections.
We believe young people deserve a holistic education that acknowledges most sex takes place for reasons of intimacy, pleasure and desire – not just reproduction, and that sex has a multitude of benefits.
Older people
In a survey of more than 15,000 British people, 57% of men and 37% of women, aged 65 – 74, reported having sex with someone of the opposite sex in the last year. Among those aged 55 – 64 it was 75% of men and 59% of women.
Yet there is still a myth that older people don’t have sex, which means their sexual health needs, and particularly conversations around pleasure and wellbeing, can be overlooked. Sexual pleasure may change as we get older but it doesn’t need to stop. Love and sex news: in pictures
Fantasy vs reality
Pornography plugging the gaps in young people’s sex education and skewing their attitudes towards consent and expected sexual behaviour, as well as unrealistic body ideals promoted through the media, means there are many concerns about the ways in which the line between fantasy and reality has been blurred.
Sexual pleasure is different for everyone and it’s important that at the heart of all sexual relationships is respect. The more we talk about what sex is really like and promote informed choices, the less harmful the extreme images, videos and information can be.
Learning disabilities
There is a paradox around sex and relationships for people with learning disabilities, summed up last week in the report Unprotected, Overprotected. Young people with learning disabilities who aren’t given information and support they need are vulnerable to sexual abuse, but on the other hand may be stifled and kept isolated by parents, carers and support workers through a desire to protect them – sometimes at the expense of potential friendships and relationships.
It is important that people with learning, or other kinds of disabilities, are still seen as sexual beings, as all of us are, but that they are also given the appropriate support they need to make informed and safe choices.
Pillow talk
Talking about sex with a partner can be a challenge, whether you’re getting together with someone new or you’re in a long-term relationship. For many people it’s much easier to have sex than discuss it – but good communication can really enhance sexual wellbeing. By sharing your sexual likes, dislikes and expectations, you can make choices together and learn more about how to please each other.
It’s also important that people have the confidence to speak to health professionals about their sexual health, which may include talk about sexual pleasure. A recent survey by Ovarian Cancer Action found that 66% of 18 to 24-year-old and 11% of over 65-year-old women said they would be shy saying ‘vagina’ to a healthcare professional. There was also embarrassment about using the word ‘orgasm’.
While this can be harmless embarrassment, in some cases it can lead to late diagnoses of more serious problems.
FPA has created a briefing on pleasure and wellbeing for sexual health professionals, and has information for men and women about various aspects of sexual pleasure and wellbeing. www.fpa.org.uk/shw15
Natika Halil is CEO of FPA
