Sexuality and Occupational Therapy: Breaking the Barrier

Ever since my OT class was told that we would be discussing sexual function in our neuro class, I have been eagerly waiting for that day to come.  What intrigues me so much about neurological disorders and sexuality is that it is so taboo! I'm very excited that our class will be discussing this topic.  When I came across the article with the title "Fucktionality: Why Sexual Function Should be Part of Occupational and Physical Therapies for Disabled People", I was immediately hooked.  I mean come on, that is a rather intriguing title.  I started reading the article solely based on the title, but I ended up getting so much more from reading the article itself.

Andrew Gurza is a gay man who has cerebral palsy who has a simple call to action: occupational and physical therapists need to emphasize sexual function in intervention.  He retells a personal story of his frustration with his inability to thrust when engaging in intimacy.  When confronting his OT about his issue, she became very uncomfortable and was unable to help him engage in this occupation.  He goes on to explain that therapists are not being properly educated about the importance of sexual function in therapy and how to help clients engage in this very important activity.

It truly made me angry when I saw how the occupational therapist reacted to the client's request to get help in his sexual performance.  Instead of understanding his frustrations, she made him feel uncomfortable about his desires.  People have a tendency to de-sexualize those with disabilities and have trouble understanding that they are sexual creatures just like the rest of us.  This article was extremely eye-opening for me because it gave a personal account of this kind of problem that many wheelchair-bound individuals face.

I would strongly urge our program at UTHSC to educate the MOT classes on this matter and provide us with the information needed to provide intervention and counsel for these individuals.  The following is a link to AOTA's page on occupational therapy interventions regarding sexuality: http://www.aota.org/About-Occupational-Therapy/Professionals/RDP/Sexuality.aspx
Since I was uneducated in the various ways sexuality can be used in intervention, this site gave me a broad idea of what it might look like.

Gurza, A. (2016, June). Fucktionality: Why sexual function should be part of occupational and physical therapies for disabled people. Retrieved from https://www.kinkly.com/2/13660/sexual-health/health-professional/fucktionality-why-sexual-function-should-be-part-of-occupational-and-physical-therapies-for-disabled-people