D R M INDEPENDENT LIVING
DISABLING THE PREJUDICES AROUND SEX AND RELATIONSHIPS IN PUBLIC HEALTH AND SOCIETY
For many disabled people, denied support around sex and relationships, living the life they want can seem impossible. Angela Matthews shares her own experiences navigating dating and the healthcare system. THE experiences of disabled people around sex and relationships are not a subject that is often discussed – not in the right way anyway. This is why I was pleased to see Disability History Month back in December covering the issue and provoking a very healthy debate.
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Earlier in the year, the National Disability Strategy survey had asked disabled people and the general public if they would “feel comfortable in an intimate relationship with a disabled person”. I’m not afraid to admit tears fell when I was taking the survey and read this question, and I didn’t feel much better when I read the survey analysis, published some months later. The findings showed that just over half (56 per cent) of the general public said they ‘agree’ or ‘strongly agree’ that they would feel comfortable being in an intimate relationship with a disabled person. Perhaps more worryingly though, just 65 per cent of disabled people said they would feel comfortable being in an intimate relationship with another disabled person.
disabilit yreviewmagazine.co.uk
