Chapter 11: Sense and Sensuality: A Call for a Crip Dialogue Moving Beyond the Language of “Sexual Health” and “Healthy Sexualities”

The notion of sexual health has become a buzzword across various spheres, including the scientific, political, and social arenas. In a similar manner, discussions about the subject of disability and sexuality are commonly articulated through the lens of sexual health and “healthy sexualities.” Greater focus has been placed on issues of protection, abuse, sexually transmitted diseases, and unplanned pregnancy. Opportunities to talk about sex, desire, and pleasure is missing in this discourse. Drawing on my experience conducting studies about disability and sexuality, I interrogate the (over)reliance and unproblematized use in terms of the language of sexual health and healthy sexuality when it comes to people labeled/with intellectual disabilities.