NEW LOCATION
Its aims are to help educate to reduce risk
Sexual health centre aims to educate.
All About Sex Jeopardy, Match the STI and Woody the penis are some of the tools Vanessa Walker uses in her sexual health presentations at schools across Cape Breton.
It’s part of her job as executive director of the Cape Breton Centre for Sexual Health, which has moved to 440 George Street, sharing an office with the Youth Project.
“From the (Canso) Causeway to Glace Bay I will go into schools, parenting groups and talk about pregnancy, safer sex, STIs (sexually transmitted infections), protection,” said Walker, who has been in the position since 2016.
Feb. 12-16 is Sexual and Reproductive Health Awareness Week and Walker hopes to get an important message across — the earlier you start talking to children and youth about sexual health, the better.
“The earlier you start these conversations the easier it is for them to grasp it. Why start that in junior high when you can start at an earlier age? I talk to my kids about consent … Knowledge is power,” said Walker, who has an 11-year-old son and a four-year old daughter.
“When you know better, you do better, so we are getting better with being more inclusive because society is changing… We have to make it a part of our everyday vernacular, to talk about sexual health,” said Erin MacDonald, chair of the board of directors for the centre.
With the Internet, social media and gaming consoles, youth are exposed to many mistruths and misconceptions about sex. They are also able to get graphic images and video for free online, sometimes by accident. For some, this is their first lesson in sexual relations.
“The average age of exposure to porn is now 11. Eleven. My son is 11. It’s terrifying,” said Walker, who is also an abortion doula.
“You can’t be with them all the time. Why not give them
the tools so you don’t have to monitor them all the time.”
It’s what youth are learning from this early exposure to pornographic material that is concerning, she explained.
“There’s no love, there’s no communication, there’s no bond, there’s no chivalry, there’s no dating,” Walker said.
“There’s no empathy,” added MacDonald, who is a registered nurse.
Another misconception Walker comes across when doing her presentations is about the Plan B pill to stop a pregnancy from happening.
“They (teens) think if they take it when they are pregnant then they won’t be pregnant anymore. That is not true. You will still be pregnant,” Walker said.
Youth aren’t the only demographic
the Centre for Sexual Health is there to help. There is a box for parents with kids up to eight years old, with books that help educate at their level of understanding, giving details that are age appropriate.
“I brought this home for my daughter and she would sit on her bed, cross-legged, and read them,” said Walker.
Walker suggests letting the child take the lead when it comes to talking about sexual health. When they ask questions, she said give them answers that are good for their age and level of understanding. She also pointed out they don’t need to know all the details at once.
Another thing Walker stressed was making sure young children know the scientific names for their body parts,
like penis and vagina, instead of nicknames.
She said this helps protect them from sexual predators who will use a child’s lack of knowledge about their body to take advantage of them.
It is also important to teach children that all of their body is sacred, not just the parts covered by a bathing suit.
“Is touching the inside of their thigh OK? Is giving them a massage OK? No, it’s not. We need to teach them this,” she said.
With the new office, Walker hopes to secure more funding so they can extend hours to Monday to , with some Saturdays for drop-ins.
Right now, the Sexual Health Centre’s operational costs are covered by a grant and the United Way helps fund some of their programs.
The centre also offers advice and educational pamphlets for seniors.
“Knowledge is power is a cliché but it is applicable here,” MacDonald said.