Group of friends with heads together.jpg

Talking about sexuality and disability can feel scary, intimidating, and taboo. But it doesn’t have to be.

Let’s break the stigmas and talk about it.

For many individuals with disabilities, it is nearly impossible to easily access information about their sexual and reproductive health. Students in special education classes are often left out of their schools’ sex education programs. Disabled adults are seen as “sexless” and often cannot access life-saving reproductive healthcare. And across all ages and disability types, disabled individuals are much more likely to sexually abused than their non-disabled peers.

Three people of different ages sit in the grass together. One has Down Syndrome

Accessible Sexual Health is a mission-driven organization that seeks to change the state of sexual health for people with disabilities. We see all individuals as inherently deserving of knowledge about their bodies, consent, relationships, and abuse prevention. We seek to educate not only those with disabilities, but those who are part of their lives either as providers, caregivers, or allies.

Our Commitment to Access

MISSION: Our mission is to advance access to sexual and reproductive health education for all people with disabilities.

VISION: Our vision is a world in which people with disabilities have the same opportunities as their non-disabled peers to express their sexuality, access sexual and reproductive health education, and live free from sexual abuse and exploitation.

CORE VALUES

Sexuality is a normal and natural part of the human condition.
Disability is a normal and natural part of the human condition.
Every person with a disability deserves equal access to sexual health education.
Sexual health education should be accessible and developmentally appropriate for people with disabilities.
People with disabilities deserve the freedom to choose their relationships and friendships.
People with disabilities deserve to live free from abuse, neglect, and sexual exploitation.

Our Founder

As a high school freshman, I experienced an awkward, shame-filled experience in my abstinence-only sex education class. While the instructor’s intent was to advise us about the risks of sexual activity, it came from a place of sex-negativity with no regard for anyone who didn’t fall into the mold of an able-bodied, heterosexual relationship.

So, when I had the opportunity to become a peer sexuality educator in college, I jumped on the chance. I joined a team of like-minded peers who provided comprehensive sex education and sexual abuse prevention training to the students on our campus. It was empowering, sex-positive, and sorely needed.

Nellie poses for the camera in a tshirt that says "If you can be anything, be inclusive"

Fast-forward to 2013; I earned my masters degrees in social work and public health, with the hope to find work as a sex educator. Unfortunately, full-time employment in this type of role was virtually non-existent. Instead, I began working in disability advocacy at a Center for Independent Living, where I found myself embraced and accepted as a person with a mental health disorder within a community of self-advocates.

I began to teach sex education for the young adults served by my small non-profit. It’s here that I found my true passion, as I found out how often disabled individuals are left out of any conversations around sexual health.

For so many disabled individuals, it is nearly impossible to easily access information about their sexual and reproductive health. Students in special education classes are often left out of their schools’ sex education programs (if they have them at all). Disabled adults are seen as “sexless” and often cannot access life-saving reproductive healthcare. And across all ages, individuals with disabilities are much more likely to be sexually abused than their non-disabled peers.

Nellie smiles at the camera wearing a jean jacket and colorful scarf.

That’s why I created Accessible Sexual Health.

I wanted to change the state of sexual health for people with disabilities.

We see all individuals as inherently deserving of knowledge about their bodies, consent, relationships, and abuse prevention. We seek to educate not only those with disabilities, but those who are part of their lives either as providers, caregivers, or allies.

Our content and services center the diverse range of the disability experience. We are comprehensive, sex-positive, neurodiverse-affirming, and disability-centered.

Let’s work together to advance access to sex education for every BODY.

Let's Work Together