So this week is Sexual Health Week,
which is run by FPA, The Family Planning Association,
who are a sexual health charity here in the UK.
And, also, if you didn't know,
I'm an ambassador for Brook,
who are another sexual health charity in the UK
and they help support FPA on a lot of their projects,
including Sexual Health Week.
And the theme this year is porn.
So, I've actually made some videos about porn before,
but I thought I would do something
a bit different for this one
and talk about some of the benefits
and the positive things about porn.
Media coverage of pornography
tends to have headlines all about
the negative side of pornography
and how it's ruining everybody's lives and relationships.
Obviously, it's important to talk about
some of the problems of porn,
but, often, these are the only conversations
we're having about porn.
There's no education and there's no balance.
It's pretty much all negative
in terms of the mainstream coverage of porn.
So, just before I get into my list
of some of the benefits of porn,
I just wanted to talk about some of the ways
in which we can combat some of the problems with porn.
And these are things that are advocated by
lots of sexual health charities,
including Brook and FPA.
First of all, obviously,
comprehensive sex and relationships education in schools.
This way we can allow young people
to have a healthy idea of what
sex and relationships should look like.
And so, they can then think critically
when it comes to the porn that they watch.
And this kind of education needs to
not shame people for watching porn
and, instead, create open lines of dialogue.
So, if anybody is worried about the effects of porn,
then they know how to seek help.
And there are people that they can talk to.
In the last couple of years,
the UK government has banned
certain kinds of porn production in the UK
and porn consumption.
And they're trying to limit and restrict
what you can access online.
But there is no evidence that
these kinds of restrictions actually work.
This is the Internet we are talking about.
And, of course, issues like low self-esteem,
low body confidence, sexual coercion,
pressuring, and sexual violence
are all serious issues.
But putting restrictions on porn
isn't going to help solve these problems
if we don't also tackle the other things in society
that contribute to them.
And so, whilst I think that
there are some problems with porn,
I don't think that the solution
is putting bans and restrictions on it.
I think the solution is education.
And so, now, getting into my list of
the positive side of porn.
Just to switch up the narrative a little bit.
Also, I'll note that this list
is about the positives of porn consumption.
Talking about the porn industry and the production
is kind of an entirely separate conversation.
So, this is about watching, consuming, viewing porn.
So, number one, it is arousing.
I mean, we shouldn't hide from the fact that
a lot of people are turned on by porn.
And sexual excitement and pleasure feel great.
And we shouldn't shame people for that.
Number two, it's relaxing.
Different people like to do different things
in order to relax.
And, for some people, at the end of a stressful day,
it can be really nice to unwind by
watching some porn and masturbating.
Three, it can be really useful for LGBTQ plus folks.
Any education or representation of
non-hetero or non-cis bodies, desires, or relationships
is often absent or limited in schools and in the media.
So, often porn can help to educate,
but also normalise a lot of the things that
LGBTQ folks experience but don't find represented elsewhere.
Four, you can discover what you like.
There are so many different kinds of sexual acts out there
that different people are into.
So, perhaps porn can be a source of
inspiration and self-discovery.
Five, porn can benefit your relationships.
Watching porn with a partner could add
an extra element to your sex life,
but it can also work as an icebreaker
in order to be able to talk and communicate
about things like your sexual desires and your boundaries.
And, number six, having sex with yourself and watching porn
is a lot less hassle than having sex with somebody else.
Perhaps less likely to be disappointing.
When we talk about porn,
we often mainly talk about videos online.
But, obviously, there are loads of other
different kinds of material that can be classified as porn.
So, you have literature.
A lot of erotic fiction.
And, now that I think about it,
there must be erotic audio books.
So, you can listen.
Are there erotic podcasts?
Oh my god.
If you know of any, please let me know.
The classic still image.
And, also, I've seen, floating around on the Internet,
artsy black and white porn GIFs on Tumblr.
So, basically, when it comes to porn,
please educate yourself, keep an open mind,
and don't shame others.
I will leave a bunch of links in the description
from Brook, from FPA, and some other places.
All about porn and about Sexual Health Week.
Thanks so much for watching.
Please give the video a thumbs up if you enjoyed it.
And I would love to hear your thoughts
on pornography and education in the comments section below.
Also, if you have any recommendations for erotic literature.
That would be great.
And don't forget to subscribe,
'cause I make new videos every week.
Bye.