{"id":13073,"date":"2024-03-06T14:17:25","date_gmt":"2024-03-06T03:17:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.spinalcure.org.au\/?p=13073"},"modified":"2024-03-06T14:20:17","modified_gmt":"2024-03-06T03:20:17","slug":"bowels-bladders-and-sex-addressing-the-stigma-after-an-sci","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.spinalcure.org.au\/news\/bowels-bladders-and-sex-addressing-the-stigma-after-an-sci\/","title":{"rendered":"Bowels, bladders and sex: addressing the stigma after an SCI"},"content":{"rendered":"

Issues with bowels, bladder and sex are often taboo for those living with a spinal cord injury (SCI) and not really thought about by those that aren’t. Inspired by a BBC Article with a personal account by Niall McCann here<\/a>, we spoke to our community ambassador Tom Elphick about these intimate challenges.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Tom was an aspiring professional dancer whose life took a drastic turn when a dive into the waves at a beach in Portugal saw him hit his head on a hidden sand bank. At 21 years old, Tom was left paralysed but considers himself one of the \u2018lucky ones’ after being able to walk, albeit unsteadily, out of hospital. And while he recognises many others are less fortunate, Tom knows all too well the silent challenges that people continue to face as a result of suffering an SCI.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter my injury, my bladder and bowels, much like the rest of my body, became extremely hyperreflexic and nothing was going to come out on its own. I had a catheter and daily bowel management to ensure that I was continually emptying.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Despite being years on from his SCI, Tom continues to face unexpected challenges at inconvenient moments.<\/p>\n

\u201cStill to this day, I have issues with holding on and letting go. I’ve learnt lots of techniques, hunching over to allow my abdominal muscles to relax, building up saliva in my mouth (this stimulates the same system that controls the peeing reflex), focusing techniques and sometimes blocking out sounds help me control my neural efforts.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Adding, \u201cThen there are the times where I can’t hold. This is still very embarrassing, but to my absolute amazement, there is little stigma from any of my friends. I might shed a tear, but the story just becomes another antic and we can all laugh about it later.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even less spoken about is the sensitive topic of intimacy and sexual dysfunction.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnother aspect impacted by an SCI is sexual arousal, but while I feel like it’s all because of my injury, I have realised that I am in no way outside of the norm.\u201d Going on to add, \u201cYour mind adapts to overcome the new physical and physiological barriers necessary to achieve sexual satisfaction.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Exploring and experimenting with different techniques and focusing on areas above the level of injury can help individuals and their partners find new ways to experience pleasure. These areas are more likely to become sensitive and respond to physical stimuli like touch.<\/p>\n

\u201cNavigating trial and error without a supportive partner can be more difficult, but it is important to remember that not everyone is deterred by disability.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cIt is crucial to find partners who view challenges as opportunities for exploration and growth. While the intricacies of living with an SCI may pose some obstacles, there are people willing to embrace these complexities and see intimacy as a shared challenge.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The resilience and evolving perspectives that individuals like Tom develop on their journey post-SCI, emphasises that whilst the landscape will have changed, the potential for connection can still remain rich and rewarding. By sharing personal stories and experiences, individuals with SCIs can help raise awareness and break down the barriers surrounding these topics.<\/p>\n

A huge thanks to Tom for his openness and willingness to share such a level of detail with us. Tom\u2019s in his final year of studying for a Doctor of Medicine at Notre Dame University, but can also be found on the Sydney comedy circuit talking about the trials and tribulations of having an SCI, and living with disability \u2013 the reason why he started comedy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\n
\nIssues with bowels, bladder and sex are often taboo for those living with a spinal cord injury (SCI) and not really thought about by those that aren’t. Inspired by a BBC Article with a personal account by Niall McCann here,…\n<\/div>\n
Continue reading “Bowels, bladders and sex: addressing the stigma after an SCI”<\/span>…<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Continue reading “Bowels, bladders and sex: addressing the stigma after an SCI”<\/span>…<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":13078,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22,86],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nBowels, bladders and sex: addressing the stigma after an SCI - SpinalCure Australia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Executive Director, Duncan Wallace took the stage as one of the keynote speakers at the Regional Development Australia's 2024 Inland Growth Summit in Dubbo held 21-22 February 2024.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.spinalcure.org.au\/news\/bowels-bladders-and-sex-addressing-the-stigma-after-an-sci\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Bowels, bladders and sex: addressing the stigma after an SCI\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Issues with bowels, bladder and sex are often taboo for those living with a spinal cord injury (SCI)\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.spinalcure.org.au\/news\/bowels-bladders-and-sex-addressing-the-stigma-after-an-sci\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"SpinalCure Australia\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/spinalcure\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-03-06T03:17:25+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-03-06T03:20:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.spinalcure.org.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/tomelphick.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Emily Robertson\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@SpinalCure\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@SpinalCure\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Emily Robertson\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.spinalcure.org.au\/news\/bowels-bladders-and-sex-addressing-the-stigma-after-an-sci\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.spinalcure.org.au\/news\/bowels-bladders-and-sex-addressing-the-stigma-after-an-sci\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Emily Robertson\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.spinalcure.org.au\/#\/schema\/person\/30b8e82c895f8243a7f48d852a62ba3c\"},\"headline\":\"Bowels, bladders and sex: addressing the stigma after an SCI\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-03-06T03:17:25+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-03-06T03:20:17+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.spinalcure.org.au\/news\/bowels-bladders-and-sex-addressing-the-stigma-after-an-sci\/\"},\"wordCount\":606,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.spinalcure.org.au\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.spinalcure.org.au\/news\/bowels-bladders-and-sex-addressing-the-stigma-after-an-sci\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.spinalcure.org.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/tomelphick.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\",\"Personal stories\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.spinalcure.org.au\/news\/bowels-bladders-and-sex-addressing-the-stigma-after-an-sci\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.spinalcure.org.au\/news\/bowels-bladders-and-sex-addressing-the-stigma-after-an-sci\/\",\"name\":\"Bowels, bladders and sex: addressing the stigma after an SCI - 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