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Bang without Barriers: Tips and Tricks for Disabled Sex
Society is rife with myths around disability and sexuality, even going as far as saying disabled people can't be sexual. But this just isn't true! Disabled sexuality is creative, restorative, exploratory, and vast in how it looks from person to person. In this pleasure-focused workshop, we'll unpack some myths related to disabled sex,…
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Doing It Differently: How Sex and Disability Really Feels with Andrew Gurza
Usually if we talk about sex and disability, we tend to focus on the mechanics of sex and disability. In this class, we will instead ask "How does sex and disability feel?" In doing so, we will uncover the emotional aspects of sex and disability that often go overlooked. Andrew will give tips…
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Writing a disabled perspective into erotica
[Note: Xan West does not use pronouns and goes by “Xan.”] Language is powerful. It has the ability to enhance and validate someone’s experience, just as it has the ability to invalidate. Erotica writers are especially imbued with this influence, as their work requires them to describe bodies, sexual acts, and lived experiences more intimately…
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When dildos came out of the closet
In the 1970s, dildos were a point of contention in the feminist movement. A 1974 issue of Lesbian Tide warned: “anyone admitting to using a dildo today would probably be verbally castigated for enjoying ‘phallic’ pleasure.” Some activists thought dildos were too reminiscent of the patriarchy. Others felt that since dildos specifically didn’t require men, using them…
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From velcro to veterans: the history of Sportsheets
Sportsheets International began quietly, as a small business operating out of founder Tom Stewart’s garage. It was 1993, and Stewart had already spent years teaching himself to sew. He had a vision, one that had been sparked years earlier as he watched David Letterman, decked out in a velcro suit, jump on a…
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Embracing the sexual needs of Little People
Dr. Marylou Naccarato is doing something pretty groundbreaking: she’s talking about sex as a Little Person. According to a recent profile in The Atlantic, Naccarato is the first in her field to focus specifically on the sexual needs of Little People — physical, emotional, and psychosocial. Naccarato, who has a type of dwarfism called…
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A little kink, a lot of confidence
“Sex with a disability is a tough sell,” writes a queer woman named Carrie, “but not (just) for the reasons people assume. In my experience, the hardest part isn’t convincing someone else you’re desirable — it’s convincing yourself that your body is worth pleasing.” For her, one small act of kink gave her more…
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The amazing, snappy, one-handed condom
It’s so simple, so ingenious, it’s surprising nobody has thought of it before: a condom that can be safely and easily opened with one hand. Designer Benjamin Pawle came up with the idea as part of his two-part “Preserving Human Dignity” project, which seeks to empower those with hemiplegia — a disorder that causes…
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A quadriplegic woman’s journey to sexual happiness
This personal essay was originally published in 2006, but it is so honest and important that it deserves to be highlighted. Getting Around: How I Discovered My Wheelchair Wasn’t a Chastity Belt by Tiffiny Carlson is a poignant piece about a woman growing up and taking charge of her sexuality. Carlson broke her neck when…
