World Autism Awareness Day

Today is the sixth annual World Autism Awareness Day. Autism organizations around the world are celebrating with many unique awareness-raising and fundraising events, and individuals are showing their support by wearing blue today.

Although SexEd Central is not an autism organization, we're still celebrating World Autism Awareness Day today! After all, people with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and Asperger's Syndrome (AS) are sexual beings, just like everyone else. They deserve to be treated with the same respect, equality and fairness as everyone else. Relevant, practical and applicable sexuality education is a huge part of that respect, equality and fairness.

What better day to tell you about the new workshops currently under development! Here's what you can look forward to in the very near future ...

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Workshops for Parents, Caregivers, Foster Parents and Support Staff

This interactive workshop aims to provide parents, caregivers and support staff with the knowledge, comfort and skills they need to effectively support individuals with AS and ASD. Because sexuality is a normal, healthy part of the development of every human being, it's essential that caregivers and support persons have an understanding and awareness of sexuality and sexual behaviour in relation to persons with ASD and AS.


Participants in this workshop will:

• Enhance their knowledge and understanding of sexuality and sexuality education


• Gain an understanding of the unique sexuality education needs of people with AS and ASD


• Develop the skills and comfort necessary to effectively communicate with others about sexuality and sexual behaviour


• Learn practical and effective strategies to understand and respond to inappropriate sexual behaviours

Participants will also be provided with a variety of resource materials to further enhance their knowledge, skills and effectiveness.

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Workshops for Children, Youth and Adults with AS and ASD

Participants in this workshop series will gain both knowledge and practical skills in relation to sexuality and sexual behaviour. Because the learning needs of people with AS and ASD differ from those of the neurotypical population, each lesson and all activities will be tailored to the particular workshop audience. The primary goal of this workshop is to equip participants with the information, motivation and behavioural skills they need to be healthy, happy and safe.

Topics in this workshop series may include:

• Puberty: understanding the whats, whys and how to cope


• Communication


• Love and friendship


• Physiological aspects of sexuality


• Sexual relations and other sexual behaviours


• Emotions


• Contraception and pregnancy prevention


• STIs, HIV and prevention


• Sexual orientation


• Alcohol, drugs and sexuality


• Sexual abuse and inappropriate sexual behaviours


• Sexism and violence in romantic relationships


• Managing emotions, theory of mind and intimacy

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These new workshops are VERY exciting and represent a major step forward in the resources and workshops offered here at SexEd Central! If you would like further information or to set up a consultation, please do not hesitate to contact me (Candice) directly.

Stay tuned in the coming months as we continue to grow!

Candice :)

Back to the OYC

It has been far too long since I've sat down to enjoy the pleasure of writing. I've missed this!

So, to catch you up on my world ...

Mark and I moved into our new home on Canada Day and have been busy unpacking and settling in. On Friday the house was hit by lightening, which has definitely been a challenging experience. We are now in the process of replacing the luxuries destroyed by the hit ... not to mention anxiously awaiting the repair of our a/c as we hit record temperatures today.

However, this post isn't about our new home (more on that soon!) ... it's about the following announcement:

I am pleased to say that I will be facilitating a workshop tomorrow night at the Orillia Youth Centre. If you haven't been following me for long, you may not know that the OYC is where I "started out" with workshops. I am excited to head back there for some thorough and honest discussion with the youth. We'll be talking about STIs and contraception ... as well as whatever topics come up! If you're in the area, you should stop by and check it out tomorrow (July 18) at 5pm!

I'll let you know how the workshop goes!

Candice :)

Website changes are coming ...

The title says it all ... I am working on a number of changes to the site, including updates and lots of added content. That said, it's a slow process as I'm very picky about what I publish (accurate and high-quality is an absolute must) and I write the majority of it myself.  So, stay tuned as I post updates (I will let you know where to find them here on my blog).

In the meantime, I am open to suggestions for just about everything ... content, blog posts, information, topics, sex ed workshop ideas, etc ... send them my way! Please send me an email or leave a comment with your ideas/suggestions/constructive criticism and I will certainly take what you say into account.  THANK YOU for your continued support as I, and Sex Ed Central, continue to grow.

Sex Ed Central -- 5000+ visitors!

It's hard to believe that it's been over a year since I decided to take the plunge and follow my dream to become a sexuality educator.  A lot has happened in this past year ...



[caption id="attachment_119" align="alignright" width="115" caption="Workshop Poster"][/caption]

Spring 2010: My unique CYW placement, wherein I partnered with the AIDS Committee of Simcoe County and the Orillia Youth Centre to develop, deliver and evaluate a 10-week sex ed workshop for at-risk youth.  It was a great experience and definitely contributed to shaping my future goals!

Summer 2010: I continued to build this site, adding content and receiving tremendous support and encouragement.

Fall 2010: Entered the final year of the CYW program, trying to figure out what to do "next".  I joined the Board of Governors of the AIDS Committee of Simcoe County around this time.  I had some key networking experiences during this time as well - particularly at the OACYC (Ontario Association of Child and Youth Counsellors) conference in Orillia.  Additionally, I facilitated an incredible and unique workshop -- Radical Relationships and Ethical Promiscuity -- for OPIRG at the University of Guelph.

[caption id="attachment_1426" align="alignleft" width="88" caption="Governor General's Academic Medial"]

Talking about SEX is so much fun!

Last night I had an opportunity to get back into what I love most, and facilitate a workshop!  Yeah!  Thanks to my cousin, Steph, for telling her fellow staff about her "Sexpert" cousin, and getting me an "in"!  It also helps that, as a Child and Youth Worker (CYW), I love working and interacting with teens.  Go CYW!  :)

Last night's session, with a dozen or so early/mid teen girls, was fun, exciting, entertaining and -- as always -- a great learning experience for me.  The girls were excited to talk, ask questions and get a first-hand look at many of the contraceptive options available to them.  I was equally (perhaps more!) excited to share my knowledge and engage them in discussion.  Woody made his usual appearance for an interactive condom demonstration, inviting laughter and jokes, as well as a few size-comparisons (sorry Woody, it seems you don't always measure up!).  End the evening with delicious cake (if you know me, you know I definitely enjoy cake!) and we've got a pretty awesome-tastic evening!

If you or someone you know may be interested in booking a workshop, pass this along or contact me!

Enjoy the sunshine!

Candice :)

Find me under 'Sexual Health Education'

Last week, while in the midst of a discussion with one of my CYW instructors, I realized something ... my life revolves around sex.  You may be thinking "Well duh, you're making a career out of talking about it!", but until that moment I had not realized just how much of my life - both professional and academic - is focused on this topic.

The more I think about it, the happier I feel.

I consider myself to be very fortunate - I am building a life and career around something I love to do, albeit slowly.  I get to talk about what I think is an absolutely fascinating subject, and only some of the people I encounter look at me like I've lost my marbles.  Of course, I wouldn't be here if I were doing it all on my own.

In fact, Sex Ed Central wouldn't exist if it weren't for Mark Garland, Owner of Analyzed Marketing Solutions and my wonderful, supportive life partner.

Mark has helped me take my "dream job" and build it into a reality.  Not only did he see my potential and encourage me to "go for it!" - he has helped me to put my business together and continually helps me to figure out where to go next.  He has put together this website, taught me how to use it, and is constantly fixing it when I mess things up.  Thanks to his amazing internet marketing and SEO work, people are actually able to find me amongst the millions of websites out there.  In fact, if you go to google.ca and search for "sexual health education" (without the quotations), you will find this site listed on the first page.  Out of over 53 MILLION results, I'm in the top 10.  How awesome is that?

This post is dedicated to you, Mark, for all that you have done for me.  THANK YOU for your help and support, your skills and knowledge, and your willingness to listen to me talk about sex on a daily basis.  Thank you for not complaining when I pack our apartment with a thousand condoms and dozens of boxes of educational materials, and thanks most of all for believing in me.

Now, who wants to talk about sex?

- Candice

p.s. Here's the poster for my workshop on Wednesday!

Ethical Promiscuity

It's almost here!

Wednesday, November 10 is the date of my very exciting and unique workshop is at the University of Guelph! I will be facilitating what promises to be a very interesting discussion. The workshop, entitled "Radical Relationships and Ethical Promiscuity" is sponsored by OPIRG and will be held on campus. If you're interested in more information, don't hesitate to contact me!

The purpose of this workshop is to open up discussion about issues that fall outside of the scope of "typical" sexual health education. We will be discussing what it means to be "promiscuous" - where the word comes from, how we internalize it, and what it means for our sexual relationships. We will look at such topic as pleasure in sexual encounters, safety and self-respect, and what it means to be "ethically promiscuous".

I'm very excited - this workshop has been in the planning stages for several months and I'm looking forward to returning to my Alma Mater to make it happen.  The workshop is open to all genders, identities, orientations and preferences, and I hope to meet many new people.

I will keep you posted! As always, thanks for tuning in.

Candice :)

Sex Ed and the OACYC

This week, my program (Child and Youth Worker, or CYW) and college (Georgian College, Orillia) hosted the bi-annual regional conference for the OACYC. The OACYC, which stands for the Ontario Association of Child and Youth Counsellors, is the representational organization for my profession. As stated on their website, "The Ontario Association of Child and Youth Counsellors (OACYC, ou en français, AOCEJ, l'Association Ontarienne des conseillers à l'enfance et à la jeunesse) is the professional association representing the 2000+ Child and Youth Counsellors - members, students and associates in the province of Ontario, Canada. It also provides a voice for the other 8,000 child and youth workers in the province."

If you know me, you may already know that I love conferences!  To me, a conference is an opportunity to network and learn (and of course, to eat lots of yummy food!).  In the past, I've attended leadership conferences for Relay for Life, which were always fun and very inspiring.  This summer, the Guelph Sexuality Conference was an excellent opportunity to network and learn with other individuals who value sexuality in similar ways to myself.  This conference was just as valuable; although the attendees and the topics of discussion were different from any other conference I have attended, opportunities to learn and connect with others abounded!

Having made some valuable connections this week, I am eagerly anticipating whatever opportunities - workshop or otherwise - may arise over the next several months.  I will keep you posted as things continue to develop.  As always, thank you for taking the time to learn about what's happening with Sex Ed Central and myself!

Candice

It's the Final Day!

Tonight is my final workshop session!  This ending is bittersweet ... although it has been an insane amount of work to get through this workshop, I have enjoyed it immensely and will miss running it when it's over.  All the more reason to keep improving and looking for another opportunity to run a workshop!

I've prepared what I think is a pretty awesome info board for tonight's session on Teen Pregnancy.  My intention is to give a "reality check" to those youth who may view pregnancy and raising a child as something that would be "fun" or "something to do".  The board draws attention to three main things:

1) that having a baby changes your whole life;

2) that babies are expensive and;

3) that it's hard to pay for a baby when you and/or your partner haven't yet finished high school, or if you're relying on Governmental support to get you through.

A disclaimer, just in case: In no way am I trying to negate the positive aspects of parenthood, nor am I demeaning those who have had children when they were teens.  As usual, I am trying to educate about the realities involved with having a child.

I still need to put together the actual activity board, but I wanted to share this info board with you!

Thanks for your support!
Candice :)

We Live in a Beautiful World!

Good morning, sunshine!

Last night's workshop was entitled "Sexual Diversity & LGBTQ" and featured a phenomenal guest speaker.  Seventeen youth (biggest turnout yet!), lots of dialogue and plenty of great questions made for a productive and meaningful workshop.  My guest speaker gave the youth an opportunity to listen and talk to someone who has "been there" and I am happy to say that they didn't hesitate to take full advantage of her experience and knowledge.

I opened the discussion with "What do you think of when I say 'sexual diversity'?".  We talked about what different words mean to different people and how easily words can hurt and offend.  We also discussed how difficult it can be to struggle with something so fundamental to who you are as your sexual orientation; my guest speaker talked about her experience with internalized homophobia and the process of accepting herself as someone who did not identify as heterosexual.  I, like many of the youth, felt inspired and awed to talk with someone who has come through so much and, despite everything, is such a compassionate and loving person.

It was absolutely great!

Last night was Week 8 ... only two more sessions left!  This workshop has been phenomenal ... far better than I had ever anticipated!  The feedback from both the youth and the OYC staff has been consistently positive, and I've noticed a major improvement in the willingness of the youth to open up and talk about sex and everything related to it.  What a huge success!

Next week is all about communication ... I-statements, communicating clearly, saying what you mean and being honest with yourself and your partner(s).  I will have another guest co-facilitator.  He is also an amazing individual and someone who I can count on to help me role-model and facilitate discussion with the youth.

Stay tuned!

The path to sex ed is long and convoluted ...

When I decided to go back to school for Child and Youth Work (go Georgian College!), I didn't really think too much about my human sexuality related ambitions. After graduating from U of G, I had briefly considered doing an MSc in Human Sexuality but decided that research wasn't really my thing ... I prefer to get "in there" and connect with people, and CYW seemed a great way to do that.

Jump ahead to April 2009, at which point I found myself on placement at a really great elementary school in the Orillia/Barrie area. My supervisor gave me the freedom to schedule my time however was best suited to everyone involved, and also gave me the opportunity to pursue what I REALLY wanted to do. At that point I began offering to teach sex ed to the seventh and eight grade students at the school - and all of the teachers went for it! Needless to say, I loved every moment of it and learned more than I had ever anticipated.

Fast forward a few more months, to September 2009. Although I was only anticipating completing my second (six week) placement in the upcoming spring, I was determined to make it the best placement I possibly could. A few revisions and suggestions later, I found myself planning instead for my final 400 hour placement, which was even better! I started phoning and emailing and visiting agencies in the area, offering to do sex-ed outreach, to teach, to run a workshop ... whatever they needed and wanted! At first I didn't have too much success ... I quickly discovered that Simcoe county is rather conservative in many ways, and doesn't offer much in terms of sexual health resources to youth. Even an offer of free labour and an independent student wasn't enough to entice!

My luck turned around when I was referred by one of my fabulous teachers to the Orillia Youth Centre. Kevin quickly agreed to take me on as a student and let me develop, implement, and evaluate my own workshop. He offered me free reign to do as I pleased ... topics, content, guest speakers, activities ... it was all up to me! At that point I was ecstatic, though I was still looking for a second agency to partner with; my ultimate goal was a split placement with an agency whose name and affiliation could benefit me in the long run.

On January 8 I was attending a Leadership Conference at the Georgian campus in Barrie, where I noticed that one of the agencies attending the "networking lunch" was the AIDS Committee of Simcoe County. I introduced myself and explained what I was trying to do, and my ultimate goal of having a "split placement" with an organization such as the ACSC and the OYC. Karyn immediately agreed and said that a split placement would suit her perfectly. If I had been ecstatic before, now I was bursting with excitement!

Now that I had both of my placement supervisors arranged, I started to think about everything involved with planning and running a sex-ed workshop. Of several things I was certain: that I would be working 95% independently, that I wanted to give myself lots of time to plan the workshop, and that I wanted more than 8 weeks to run it. I talked to a few people, did a little self-advocating, and within a few days I had made the arrangements to start my placement two months early, on a part-time basis. I officially began my placement on February 8, 2010.

Though nowhere near over yet, this journey has taught me a great deal. I have realized, among other things, that I am a strong advocate for myself as well as others. I've learned that if I am determined to make something happen, I can do it! And now, as the workshop really gets going, I'm learning that I'm a pretty good sexual health educator as well!

Let's hear it for comprehensive sex ed! :)

And ... success!

Tonight was my first workshop session. Granted, it was just the intro ... I talked about myself, let the youth ask questions (they mostly just wanted to know how old I am), we talked about ground rules (confidentiality, respect, listening and being nonjudgemental), and then talked about what's coming up with the next few sessions! I asked them what kind of things they'd like to learn about and, although they were fairly quiet during the actual workshop, I received some great feedback at the end.

There were 17 youth there to start with, and 13 of them were there long enough to fill out evaluation forms! I'm pleased to say that nobody said "that sucked!" ... yay! The staff were also full of positive feedback, and I had a few good chats with youth who approached me afterwards with questions. So, the ball is rolling!

Thanks for reading :)

p.s. Two veggie trays and one fruit tray, as well as a package of cookies -- GONE in 20 minutes. They were hungry, but not for me! Phew! :)

Let's Talk About Sex

My involvement with the field of human sexuality began several years ago, with an "Intro to Human Sexuality" course in University. This course, in conjunction with my extra-curricular activities, ignited a passion for sexual health education which has continued to grow over the years.

My goal is to get "out there" and connect with young people; to get them to talk and learn about a topic which so many feel uncomfortable discussing. The reality is simple - the decisions people make regarding sex can permanently and drastically impact the rest of their lives. My current project is a joint venture between the AIDS Committee of Simcoe County and the Orillia Youth Centre. I am designing, running, and evaluating a 10 week sex ed workshop, geared towards at risk youth in the Orillia, Ontario area.

In addition to this project, I have several years of involvement with the Guelph Sexuality Conference and spent two years as a volunteer with a group called NAKED at the University of Guelph. Last year I spent six weeks in an elementary school; among other things, I taught sex ed to all of the seventh and eighth grade students.

These experiences, as well as my discussions with young people regarding all things sex, have ignited within me a determination to make my goals and dreams a reality.