This event is organised the Centre for Cultures of Reproduction, Technologies and Health (CORTH) based at the University of Sussex.

'CORTH Conversations' provide a platform for engaging discussion around key issues in reproductive health.

We are excited to welcome our three panelists....

Milly Evans is a sex education advocate and a health journalist and editor at Patient. She has been involved in sexual and reproductive health rights campaigning since she was 16, running both her own campaigns and working with the Family Planning Association, Stonewall, Terrence Higgins Trust, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and most recently the Youth Sexual Awareness for Europe (YSAFE) network.

Ben Kasstan is a Vice Chancellor's Fellow and medical anthropologist at Bristol University. His research interests sit at the intersection of health, religion and state. At Bristol, Ben is exploring recent claims that proposed changes to RSE are causing a tension between the rights afforded to religious and sexual minorities in England.

Lisa Hallgarten is a campaigner, writer, trainer, and educator working in sexual and reproductive health and rights. In her work at Education For Choice, Reproductive Health Matters journal, the Sex Education Forum and currently as Head of Policy and Public Affairs at Brook she has worked on translating evidence into good practice; and advocating for rights-based law and policy.

Tickets

It’s that time of year again! Time for the annual #FeminismInSchools conference, this year hosted at Goldsmiths. Book your free place here.

This year I will be speaking on two panels, ‘Getting sex ed right’ and ‘How to be a teenage activist’.

“We are delighted to host the 3rd annual Feminism in Schools Conference!

This year the conference will be held at Goldsmiths University, South East London.

We have an inspiring list of speakers and workshops lined up for you. The full programme will be finalised mid-October. Delighted to have the following organisations participating:

WomenEd; National Education Union; Women's Equality Party; UKFeminista; Gender Action; Feminist Library; 50:50 Parliament; Be Her Lead; She Is Clothed; The Heroine Chronicles; Fullham Cross Girls School; The Great Men Project; Birmingham University. 

We will have have panel discussions, 'How to be a teenage activist', 'Getting political', and teacher-focused workshops on develoing your own leadership ambition (WomenEd) and supporting girls in your school to lead (Be Her Lead). 

Other sessions will focus on: Art & Feminism; Challenging the Curriculum; How to build a campaign; Confidence; Body Positivity; Environmental Activism. 

Some of our sessions will be led by young campaigning feminists such as Dhillon Ahira (https://blueprintzine.com/2019/05/27/love-your-body-to-love-yourself/) and Milly Evans (https://www.isupportsexeducation.com/).”

Across the UK and the rest of the world there is an ongoing sex education crisis. Governments, education officials and some healthcare professionals are afraid and embarrassed to talk about sex and sexual health, and much of the general public is grossly misinformed and ill-educated about their rights. 

Choosing the right contraception can be difficult, confusing and scary for women and people with uteruses, especially given the host of reported side effects from many who use the pill and fear mongering around long acting reversible contraceptives.

For trans men and nonbinary people in particular, it is important to be sensitive of the language used and understand that even having a conversation about contraception can be dysphoric and embarrassing. A lack of knowledge and access to information leaves young women especially, in limbo, taught in what little, often incomprehensive, sex education they receive that condoms and the pill are their only options, with many not realising that in the UK we have 15 methods available on the NHS. 

Using myself as an example, I recently started and chose to stop taking my third contraceptive pill, having also had bad experiences with previous hormonal contraceptives. When I went to see my doctor about my PMS symptoms, I brought up both of my experiences on the pill with my doctor, telling her exactly which pill had caused which reaction, and explaining that my biggest concern was my hormonal contraceptive affecting my mental health.

Unlike other doctors I had seen, she explained all of the options available to me, along with the potential side effects, and suggested a contraceptive pathway which would allow me to monitor any negative symptoms and later decide if a long acting reversible method would be more suitable. She made it clear that if my new pill wasn’t suitable, as it wasn’t, there were other options we could explore. That gave me the power to decide what exactly I wanted to do with my body. 

I am lucky that I am well informed already about contraceptive methods, understand my body and feel comfortable discussing my options. Others aren’t so lucky. Patients need to be encouraged to monitor their menstrual cycle, understand their bodies and pay attention to adverse reactions to contraception because this type of understanding of our bodies simply isn’t taught in schools.

Access to and information about contraceptive methods are human rights issues. Many people simply don’t know what they don’t know. As healthcare professionals and advocates for sexual health, it is your responsibility to make sure that women and people with uteruses are given information about potential side effects and the positives and negatives of each option. Individual concerns should be a priority.

The most important thing to remember is that contraception is an extremely personal choice and not only will each individual react differently to each type, but each patient has different needs from their contraception, along with unique concerns.

As a healthcare professional, taking the time to listen to people with uteruses and walk them through every option available not only improves the chances of the patient picking the right type of contraception for them, but also helps them to trust you and feel comfortable coming back with further sexual health questions. We need and deserve the information and advice to make an informed choice.