Sex: Let’s talk About It And Break The Taboo

Sex is something which is still a massive taboo in our culture. It’s much more spoken about now than it once was but the fact is that it still makes a lot of people very uncomfortable. The sad fact is that a lot of kids end up getting a good portion of their sexual education online and the internet isn’t a very good teaching source of anything alone. It’s a great resource but it has to be taken in moderation and with understanding. Accepting the things that you read online as undiluted fact without any additional research can lead you into problems. But when you’re young and you don’t know any better it’s much easier than having to talk to your Mum and Dad about such things.

As with everything else, sex is something which we eventually get comfortable with. That comfort sometimes only reaches as far as the bedroom or close-knit groups but many will talk very openly about it. Being able to discuss matters like this openly and without judgement or fear is important for our evolution as a race. Sex is something which everyone does and the more it’s spoken about, the more normal it becomes. The more normal it becomes the easier it will be for people to talk about issues or concerns they may have.

It can be hard to talk about these things with family members. Children don’t want to think of their parents as sexual entities and parents don’t want to accept that their babies might not be as naive as they once were. The fact is that knowledge is power and not knowing about STD’s or safe sex can lead to all sorts of terrible situations. An uncomfortable hour spent explaining things could save a lifetime of woe due to some ill-informed decisions made early in life. It’s always better to know.

Categories: Sex, taboo, talking about it

Why the Mental Illness Taboo is Creating Bigger Problems

The issue of mental and emotional health is one that comes with a great deal of stigma. People do not see mental health problems and disorders as being on a part with problems with physical wellness or wellbeing, they see it as something that is within their control, and that, therefore, they should feel ashamed of.

Fortunately, celebrities and other public figures are becoming much more open about their mental health problems, which is helping people to realise that it is very common to have mental health problems, and that they should also be open and look for advice. Unfortunately, however, there is still a lot of work that needs to be done in this area, as the majority of people who suffer from mental health problems do not tell anyone, and many of these do not even seek help for their condition.

Ruby Wax and Stephen Fry are just two high-profile celebrities who have made confessions to have problems with their mental health (Wax has spoken about having depression whilst Fry is open about having a bipolar disorder), and their candour should, hopefully, encourage a trend of openness amongst other celebrities, which may help to reverse the trend to keep these things under wraps and to feel a sense of shame or social stigma about suffering.

Stigma (and the discrimination that causes the stigma, to an extent) is a big barrier to helping people recover from mental health issues. This is uniquely the case within the field of mental health, as there are very few physical issues that have a similar shame associated with them. People with mental health problems not only feel ashamed of themselves but report cases of abuse, where they are ostracised by members of their community as people are ‘afraid’ of mental illness and don’t want somebody affected by a condition they don’t understand in their midst, fearing they may be somehow dangerous.

 

Categories: health, mental, taboo

Could Sexual Taboos Lead to Problematic Teenage Pregnancy?

In many countries, sexual health is severely jeopardised by the simple fact that people are not willing to talk about. Young girls (and boys) do not know how to protect their wellness through safe sex practices, because they are not educated on the matter, have no access to contraceptives or sexual health advice, and cannot even ask family members for support because there is a serious taboo surrounding the issue.

 

One such young person is Thandi, a 16-year-old girl from KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, who has recently given birth. She claims that the reason she fell pregnant was that she had no way to access condoms, but also, even if she had been able to access them, she would have not had the first clue about how to use them, having never been taught.

 

A recent news report has revealed that the sexual wellbeing of teenagers is not being considered, and that social taboos surrounding sex are allowed to take priority over the education and information that is vital to keep young people healthy.

 

Limited access to contraceptives is a huge part of the problem, leading to many teenage pregnancies. Pregnancy rates are thought to be around 54 per 1,000 schoolgirls, and the reasons behind these pregnancies range from inability to access contraceptives, inability to use contraceptives effectively due to lack of education, and the stigmatisation about accessing contraceptives. Teenagers said that they often did not go to get contraceptives, even when they were aware where to get them, because they were liable to be judged, lectured or even refused access to the contraceptives altogether.

 

A suggested method of improvement is for the further education of nurses, to bring their training up to date with modern thinking and allow them to advise teenagers on contraception, including emergency contraceptive measures, such as how to access and take the ‘morning after pill’ to prevent a pregnancy in the case where a contraceptive has failed or has not been used.

Categories: pregnancy, Sex, taboo