In our education system, sex education is meant to teach students about their bodies. We’re meant to learn about how it functions, safety, and awareness of our sexual health. However, there is an elephant in the room when discussing these topics: the lack of awareness of the female body.
Girls are left out of discussions of the human body. This is problematic, considering the physical and mental health issues that are specific to our gender. Without the proper education, it can lead to issues down the line.
Periods are discussed in general sex education; however, they don’t go deep into conditions that are different from “typical” period cycles. An example is endometriosis. Endometriosis is a female-specific illness where the tissue similar to the uterus lining grows outside it, which causes irregular periods, abnormal pain, and infertility in extreme cases.
Another example of specific disorders that affect women is premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PDD). PDD is a severe and often debilitating form of PMS. It comes with intense physical and emotional symptoms and often requires Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) and hormonal treatments.
The mentioned disorders cause intense and debilitating pain for girls. Without proper education on conditions such as Endometriosis or PDD, they may feel as if something is wrong with them. As they don’t fit into what’s taught in most sex-ed classes.
Pregnancy is also a topic handled half-haphazardly. Most schools teach abstinence, but don’t account for accidental pregnancies, which are common for high schoolers. Alternatives like abortion, proper condom use, or birth control are either ignored or talked about briefly.
Postpartum Depression (PPD) is a long-lasting form of depression that some mothers experience within the first year after childbirth. This causes a mix of hormonal changes, exhaustion, and stress. It involves intense sadness, anxiety, and fatigue that hinder daily tasks and bonding with the baby.
In most sex education classes, the aftereffects and risks associated with pregnancy, especially with teen pregnancy, aren’t discussed as they should be. Our only real education on pregnancy is in a rather technical way, which it should; however, it’s a missed opportunity to address the side effects of how carrying a child for 9 months affects the body.
With Postpartum Depression, there is almost no education or awareness of this mental health condition. Many young women and girls who have children are going in blind without any knowledge of the risks of pregnancy or Postpartum Depression.
With the concerns of sex-ed in general, it’s extremely centered on men and their anatomy. Women don’t know about the specific functions their bodies perform beyond periods. This is due to the stigma of the female body being taboo or inherently sexual.
Junior Bella Ramirez had this to say about sex education on campus: “I only really knew about how periods functioned in terms of sex education for women. Nothing about how certain complications can interfere with a normal cycle. Another thing I feel like isn’t talked about much is consent. Like we get the basic “no means no,” which is very verbally focused, but sometimes a girl can say something else or nothing, and it should still mean no.”
Girls on campus need a cohesive education on their sexuality and sexual autonomy. Sexual assault and rape are rampant on all school campuses, but the issue is only exacerbated when girls don’t know or can’t process what happened to them due to a lack of proper sex education.
A student on campus who wanted to remain anonymous said, “I was sexually assaulted by a senior two years ago. I didn’t explicitly say no, but I didn’t say much, and I was extremely uncomfortable.” They made connections between rape culture and the lack of sex education.
Verbally saying no isn’t enough for girls on campus. Some cannot say it because they’re scared of what will happen if they do say no. Sex education needs to provide other examples of what rape can look like, such as breaking down barriers and coercion.
For us to have a future where girls are aware of their bodies, illnesses, and their autonomy, we need to have proper sex education. Replacing sex education with simply going online for information can only work for so long, especially when considering that the internet is rife with misinformation.