Sex Ed
One of the most important topics, that isn't discussed enough.
Why did we all have the worst Sex Ed class when we were younger? Did we even learn anything from it? What would you change about your Sex Ed class? What information do you think young boys and girls should know that you felt you should have been told?
​
The topic of sex ed is so tricky. I remember when I was in the fifth grade, girls and boys had to separate and be bought into different rooms. In the girls room we all sat down and had to watch a 30 minute long video about a young girl getting her period while at her friends house camping in their backyard. I don't remember much educational information, but I do remember a scene of the mom cooking a pancake in the shape of a woman's reproductive system and explaining the different parts, and when she was done, she put it on the dads plate and he ate it. Honestly, I was so grossed out that any information I probably should have gotten from the video, left my brain as soon as the dad ate the ovaries on the pancake. There are so many things I wished I would have been told instead. Some kids learn all of their information from their parents, others from the internet, and some don't get much knowledge at all, now they're entering adulthood with no clue in the world. I actually had a guy I knew, we were both 19 at the time, ask me if girls really had 3 holes "down there", I was pretty taken aback and thought it was a joke so I said "No there's 6." And he must've believed me because he went completely pale and then walked away muttering the word six to himself. Definitely concerning. We shouldn't think of Sex Ed as taboo or scandalous or as a danger to our kids. It is necessary. Parents do have a responsibility to tell their kids, but maybe a more scientific explanation could be of help, especially for kids who never got the talk at home.
​
Where should we start? What is the correct age to start talking about sex to our kids? I don't know the answer to those questions. But I do know that increased sexual education aids in lower rates of dating violence, intimate partner violence, sexual assault, and child sexual abuse. And that is just the tip of the iceberg. It also allows adults when they grow up, to have better communication during sexual encounters and more education on safe sex and what that means. You can know the signs of STI's, and be able to get the resources available early on. The more we discuss sex education, the more we can develop a safe and more positive view of sex and sexuality.
