Resources

Sexuality 101 Resources

Clinical Resources

Regain That Feeling - A book about the "Secrets to Sexual Self-Discovery: People Living With Spinal Cord Injuries Share Profound Insights Into Sex, Pleasure, Relationships, Orgasm, and the Importance of Connectedness" by Mitchell Tepper, PhD.

Sexual Health Rehabilitation Service (SHRS) - Contact SHRS or consult your rehab doctor for information on a sexual health clinician in your area.

Sexual Health After Spinal Cord Injury - Resource section by SCIRE Project.

Supporting Sexual Health and Intimacy in Care Facilities: A Pocket Reference Guide - Vancouver Coastal Health.

Peer Stories

How I Overcame the Stigma of my Wheelchair - Man Repeller blog

Picture This: Sex Disabilities and Queerness (video) - National Film Board (2021)

Videos

Social Life and Sex - Video resource section by Facing Disability.

Debunking Sexual Myths - Sexuality After SCI.

Redefining Sex - Sexuality After SCI.

Sex Life and Well Being - Sexuality After SCI.

Talking to your Doctor - Sexuality After SCI.

Men: What About Sex and Dating? - "Voices of Experience," Facing Disability.

Women: How About Sex and Dating? - "Voices of Experience," Facing Disability.

Check out the Video Playlist for this chapter.

Sexuality 201 Resources

Clinical Resources

AD Wallet Card - A small card to share with a healthcare provider or emergency responder on how to diagnose and treat autonomic dysreflexia - Spinal Cord Injury BC

Autonomic Dysreflexia: What You Should Know - A guide to understanding AD - Consortium for Spinal Cord Medicine.

PleasureAble - A Sexual Device Manual for People With Disabilities - DHRN/VCH (PDF)

Sex Position Handbook - Use this helpful guide to switch things up in the bedroom and find what works best for you!

Articles

How I Have Sex as a Quadriplegic - Rachelle Friedman, Cosmopolitan.

Videos

The Big "O" - Sexuality After SCI 

Effects of SCI on Sex - Sexuality After SCI 

Erections - Sexuality After SCI 

Facilitated Sex - Sexuality After SCI 

Pre-Injury Factors - Sexuality After SCI 

Check out the Sexuality 201 Video Playlist!

Bowel & Bladder Resources

Websites

Bladder Management - General bladder management principles after SCI, Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation.

Bladder Management - Module within Spinal Cord Injury BC x G.F. Strong's Living with SCI resource website.

Bowel Management - Module within Spinal Cord Injury BC x G.F. Strong's Living with SCI resource website.

Guides & Downloadable PDF's

Bladder Management following Spinal Cord Injury: What you should know (PDF) - Consortium for Spinal Cord Medicine.

Bladder Management (PDF) - G.F. Strong Rehabilitation Centre; to print, choose landscape, 8.5 x 11"

Bowel Management (PDF) - G.F. Strong Rehabilitation Centre; to print, choose landscape, 8.5 x 11"

Videos

Managing Bodily Functions - Sexuality After SCI

SCI-U: Bladder course - A free, peer-based online course.

SCI-U: Bowel course - A free, peer-based online course.

Check out this chapter's Video Playlist.

Mobility ​Resources

PleasureAble: Sexual Device Manual for Persons with Disabilities (2010) - Krassioukov et al. This booklet was created by rehabilitation, sexual health clinicians and OT students, and contains pictures, descriptions and information on how to find sexual devices that work for a variety of disabilities. Available in .PDF format above, or email the SCI-BC Infoline to request a copy.

Accessible Sex Toys for People with Disabilities - My Sex Toy Guide

5 Disability-Inclusive Sex Positions to Spice up the Bedroom - Jordan Davidson, The Mighty.

Sex Positions Guide - Sex Info 101.

Contact the Sexual Health Rehabilitation Service (SHRS) or consult your rehab doctor for information on a sexual health clinician in your area.

Videos

Facilitated Sex - Sexuality After SCI

Adaptive Devices - Sexuality After SCI

Positioning with Partners - Sexuality After SCI

Check out the Video Playlist for this chapter.

Contraception Resources

Check out the Video Playlist for this chapter.

Complex Contraception at BC Women's Hospital 

References from the Contraceptive Methods Resource: 

Websites

Sex and U - an evidence-based resource on sexual health for Canadians by the Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada (SOGC).

Options for Sexual Health - Health clinics located across BC.

Health Link BC

Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC)

Books

Women’s Health Issues in Spinal Cord Medicine: Principles and Practice (2nd ed.) - Lin, Vernon W. (2010) New York, NY: Demos Medical Publishing.

Menstrual Suppression in Special Circumstances - Yolanda A. Kirkham, Melanie P. Ornstein, Anjali Aggarwal, Sarah McQuillan, (2014). Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Canada, Volume 36. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S1701-2163(15)30442-4

Intrauterine contraception: Devices, candidates, and selection. Dean, G.,& Goldberg, A., (2017). Uptodate.

Other Resources

Combined Hormonal Contraceptives (PDF) - Nurses and Nurse Practitioners of BC 

Progestin-Only Hormonal Contraceptives (PDF) - Nurses and Nurse Practitioners of BC 

Canadian Contraception Consensus (PDF) - SOGC Clinical Practice Guidelines

Canadian Contraception Consensus: Pandemic Update - SOGC

 

Sensory Resources

Clinical Resources

PleasureAble: Sexual Device Manual for Persons with Disabilities (2010) - Krassioukov et al. This booklet was created by rehabilitation, sexual health clinicians and OT students, and contains pictures, descriptions and information on how to find sexual devices that work for a variety of disabilities. Available online and in hard copy - email the SCI-BC Infoline to request a copy.

Contact the Sexual Health Rehabilitation Service (SHRS) or consult your rehab doctor for information on a sexual health clinician in your area.

Other Resources

Body Mapping (PDF) - Discover what parts of your body feel what, and how!

Mindfulness - An audio recording of how to be present, aware, and in tune with your body.

Partner Senate Focus - Use this exercise as a guide to discover what you and your partner feel.

Self Senate Focus - Print out this focus exercise and record what your body feels.

Videos

Adaptive Devices - Sexuality After SCI.

Check out the Video Playlist for this chapter!

Relationships Resources

Articles

Dating and Relationships - Blog post, Easter Seals.

Keeping a Marriage Strong After a SCI - Interview with Peer Codi Darnell, SpinalCord.

Love Online - Johanna Johnson, The Spin.

Online Dating Stories - Peer stories, The Spin.

Sex on Wheels: Relearning Intimacy - Interview with Peers Teri Thorson and Cory Parsons, Vancouver Sun.

Top 10 Tips for Partner Caregivers - Peer blog post, SCI BC.

To Post? Or Not to Post? The Weird World of Online Dating - Alexandra Stoffel, Push Living.

Websites

Dating after SCI - A page of resources by United Spinal Association.

Relationships module - Living With SCI website, G.F. Strong and SCI BC.

Wheel Love - YouTube documentary about marriage and SCI.

Books

Hold Me Tight: Seven Conversations for a Lifetime of Love - Sue Johnson

In Sickness and in Health: Love, Disability, and a Quest to Understand the Perils and Pleasures of Interabled Romance - Ben Mattlin

Regain That Feeling: Secrets to Sexual Self-Discovery - Dr. Mitchell S. Tepper

The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work - John M. Gottman

Videos

Communication - Sexuality After SCI

Dating After SCI - Sexuality After SCI

Check out our Video Playlist for this chapter!

Information for Partners Resources

Online

Spouses and Partners of People with Quadriplegia - YouTube playlist by Facing Disability

Facing Disability - YouTube playlists about family life and parenting with an SCI

10 Tips for Partner CaregiversSCI BC blog.

Broken - Blog by Author Emma K White, based on her memoir of her partner's injury, rehab and first years travelling.

Family and Caregiver Support - Resource section of Facing Disability.

Spinal Cord Injury: Talking With Your Partner about Sex: HealthLinkBC.

Wheel Love - YouTube documentary about marriage with SCI.

WAGS of SCI - Online community for wives and girlfriends of SCI to connect with each other.

What the World Gets Wrong About My Quad Husband and Me - Laura Dorwart, Catapult.

Books

Hold Me Tight - Sue Johnson, about 7 conversations every person in a relationship should have.

The Seven Principles of Making a Marriage Work - John Gottman.

Videos

Check out the Video Playlist for this chapter!

Sexual Self-Image Resources

Peer Stories

SexAbility video - Stories about dating, intimacy and sex from couples living with SCI.

How I Overcame the Stigma of my Wheelchair - Man Repeller blog.

Blogs and Art

Access sex I-III photo series - photographer Kyla Harris' interpretation of sexuality after SCI.

Finding My Sexy Voice - Kristina Sheldon, SCI BC blog.

Mobile Women - an online support group for women with disabilities.

Clinical Resources

Depression: What Should You Know - Guide by the Consortium for Spinal Cord Medicine (USA).

Books

Regain That Feeling: Secrets to Sexual Self-Discovery - Dr. Mitchell S. Tepper.

Videos

Sex After SCI: Sexual Self-Esteem - Spinal Cord Injury Research Evidence.

Confidence and Self-Esteem - Sexuality After SCI.

Check out our Video Playlist for this chapter!

Parenting Resources

Clinical Resources
Articles By and For Parents with SCI
Breastfeeding Following SCI Community Guide 
Articles By and For Parents with SCI

Dani's Twins - Dani Izzie, Documentary trailer and website, quadriplegic mom of twins

Breastfeeding with SCI - Mary Alison Cook, National Centre for Health, Physical Activity and Disability (NCHPAD, USA)

18 Things I Wish I Knew Before I Got Pregnant - Karen Hodge, SCI BC blog.

Wheel Love - YouTube documentary about marriage and parenting with SCI

Dads & Daughters (PDF) - The Spin, Winter 2015, p18-19.

I'm a Mom with a Disability - Here's How I Run the Show in my Family - Maggie Winston, Rooted in Rights.

Oh Mommy! Stories of pregnancy and parenting by SCI BC Peers (PDF) - The Spin, Fall 2015, p14-16.

Parenting from a Wheelchair: Explaining Disability to our Kids - Teal Sherer, New Mobility.

Rethinking Fatherhood: Lessons from Canada's First Paraplegic Ironman - Mark Mann, Today's Parent.

Two Wheelchairs and a Baby - Anna Sale, article & podcast.

We've Got This: Fighting to Parent - Eliza Hall, We've Got This radio show.

What Life is Like for Parents with a Disability - Lisa Bendall, Today's Parent.

Wheelchair Accessible Tips and Tricks I Learned as a First-Time Parent - Stephanie Arrache, New Mobility.

Yes, People Like Me Can Have Babies - Karen Hodge, Today's Parent.

Peer Support for Parents with SCI/Disabilities

HelpCodiHeal.com - Vancouver MommyBlogger award winning blog by Codi, a mom of 3 with SCI.

DisabledParents.net - Group has been providing information, support, and resources to parents with disabilities since 1996. The website’s primary goal is to give parents an opportunity to share ideas and learn from each other. Much of the information on this site comes straight from parents with disabilities who are living their lives and raising children.

Disabled Parenting Project -  Leverages technology to create opportunities for current and prospective parents with disabilities to connect and interact, and serve as an information clearinghouse for relevant information about adaptive parenting.

Parent Empowerment Network - Free email service for parents with disabilities and spouses of individuals with disabilities.

SCI Parenting - Tip and resource website by and for parents with SCI, by Swedish organization Spinalis. Parents with SCI can read or submit tips about strategies and adaptations for parenting with SCI, including pictures and video. English & Swedish.

Wheelchair Mommy Mommy Group - Facebook group for mothers who are wheelchair users and parenting children. Discussion topics include adaptive equipment, common complications, problem-solving, and fertility questions. Find the group on Facebook and request to be added, or message Priscilla Hedlin through her website, Wheelchair Mommy, to be added.

Through the Looking Glass - Serving families with disabilities since 1982, this website is a great source of info, from a US perspective.

SCI Parenting Tips and Tricks - English language website by Spinalis, a SCI organization out of Sweden sharing creative ways peers have adapted equipment or solved common parenting needs for parents with Spinal Cord Injuries or related disabilities.

Adaptive Equipment Needs

Some of our clients have shared the following equipment with us:

Adaptive Baby Care Equipment: Guidelines, Prototypes & Resources (book, 2000 edition) - Kris Vensand et al. This revised and expanded edition of the 1995 Adaptive Parenting Equipment: Idea Book, presents creative solutions, including adaptive equipment and commercially available products. The cost is $30 or $15 for low-income families.

How Do I Parent from a Wheelchair? - From Wheelchair Mommy blog. This page includes useful FAQs, strategies and information on the crib, stroller, and other equipment used by a mom with SCI, from the perspective of a US resident.

Tetra Society of North America - Tetra recruits skilled volunteers – who also happen to be engineers and technicians – to create assistive devices for people with specific needs that cannot be met by commercial items. Everything created through Tetra is unique and custom made for that person's particular needs. Locations across North America.

Books for Children About Parents with SCI

Mama Zooms - Jane Cowen-Fletcher

We Can Go Anywhere: My Adventures on Daddy's Chair - Glen Dick

Videos

SCI BC Peer Nicole shares how the Tetra Society helped her with an adapted crib and stroller after the birth of her first son.

Marriage and Children - videos by Facing Disability.

Parenting with a Disability video - Global News.

Mamma Pappa Lam video - Spinalis Project out of Sweden aimed at increasing knowledge about fertility, pregnancy, childbirth and parenting for people with spinal cord injuries (swedish).

IVF and Fathering with SCI - Urostat - Dad with SCI and his partner share their parenting with SCI experience.

Be sure to check out our Video Playlist for this chapter!

Fertility and Pregnancy Resources

Peer Stories

Maternity Rolls On: Pregnancy, Childbirth and Disability - Heather Kuttai, a memoir.

Wheelchair Accessible Tips and Tricks I Learned as a First-Time Parent - Stephanie Arrache, New Mobility.

We're In This Together - Karen Hodge, Pacific Post Partum Support Society; about struggles with postpartum anxiety.

Clinical Resources

Guideline No. 416: Labour, Delivery, and Postpartum Care for People with Disabilities. Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology of Canada (JOGC), 2021

The impact of spinal cord injury on pregnancy, labour and delivery: What you need to know. - Government of Queensland, Australia.

Other

SCI Factsheets: Pregnancy and spinal cord injury. - (US) Model Systems Knowledge Translation Centre

Through the Looking Glass - A nonprofit offering support and information to families impacted by disabilities.

The Disabled Woman's Guide to Pregnancy and Birth - A helpful book to have if you're expecting, or planning to start a family.

Sexuality and Reproductive Health in Adults with SCI: What You Should Know - Consortium for Spinal Cord Medicine.

Videos

Pregnancy and SCI Webinar with Dr. Anne Berndl - Mobility Clinic/Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre (Toronto)

Reproductive Health for Women with SCI - UAB School of Medicine.

Check out our Video Playlist for this chapter!

Male Fertility Resources

Articles and Other Resources

Male Fertility After Spinal Cord Injury: A Guide for Patients (PDF) - Miami Project to Cure Paralysis.

Spin Doctor Article on male fertility questions with Shea Hocaloski, Sexual Health Clinician, Vancouver Coastal Health.

Videos

Dr. Stacy Elliott of SHRS Demonstrates the Ferticare Vibrator - ICORD.

Dr. Stacy Elliott of SHRS Talks Vibrostimulation - ICORD.

Principles for Sexual Health Rehabilitation with Dr. Stacy Elliott - SCI Canada.

Things to Consider in Male Fertility After SCI - Facing Disability.

Fertility - Sexuality After SCI

Check out the Video Playlist for this chapter.

 

Youth Resources

Resources/Services

BC Kids Help Phone: 1-800-668-6868

Helpline for Children is a toll free helpline staffed by social workers who can provide help and answer questions regarding reports of child abuse or neglect.

  • Phone: 310-1234 (no area code required), 24 hours every day, to report a person under 19 who needs protection to the Ministry of Children and Family Development
  • TTD (Telephone Device for the Deaf): 1-866-660-0505

Youth Without Limits Support Group

General websites on Youth and Sexuality

Kid's Health - sexual health page - each article has an audio option.

Options for Sexual Health - clinics located across BC.

Scarleteen

Sex and U

Teen Health Source

Disability-Specific Articles on Youth and Sexuality

Body and Sexuality Disconnects with Disability - Robin Mandell, Scarleteen

Consent is Sexy: Sexual Autonomy and Disability - s. e. smith, Scarleteen

Disabled Sex Yes - s. e. smith, Scarleteen

Fitting In When Your Body Does Not - Raya Aljadir, Disability Horizons

No Big Deal, Sex and Disability - Clare Sainsbury, Scarleteen

Overcoming Barriers: Dating, Sex Can Be Daunting - Global News

Precocious Puberty - Spinal Bifida Association (PDF)

Sex and Disability, Starting the Conversation - Robin Mandell, Scarleteen

What Including & Learning From Disability Can Teach Everyone About Sex - Heather Corinna, Scarleteen

Videos

Amaze.Org - Sex ed videos made simple and accessible for youth.

Sexuality and Disability - Amaze.org video, Youtube

Sex With Disabilities? - Laci Green & Olivia, Youtube

What About Sex and Dating: AngelaFacing Disability 

What About Sex and Dating: Chase - Facing Disability 

What Sex Advice and Information Was Most Helpful?Facing Disability 

Resources for the Adults in Your Life

Advocating for Sexual Health Education for Students with Disabilities - Online MSW programs (USA)

Canadian Guidelines for Sexual Health Education - Public Health Agency of Canada (PDF)

Intro to Sex Education for Individuals Who Are Deaf-Blind - US Department of Education (PDF)

Intro to Sexuality & Youth with Disabilities - Taking About Sexuality in Canadian Communities 

Q and A: Sex Ed for Youth with Physical Disabilities - Government of Canada 

Sexual Health - BC Children's Hospital

Sexual Health Education for Young People with Disabilities for Educators - Advocates for Youth (PDF)

Teaching Sexual Health.ca - Resource page for parents

Tips for Talking to Kids About Sex/Sexuality - Planned Parenthood

Getting Adventurous Resources

Raven Kaldera’s anthologies Kneeling in Spirit and Hell on Wheels contain stories and advice from disabled submissives and dominants, respectively.

Scarleteen.com has a great guide for people who use wheelchairs and want to explore kink. Disabled sex educator Grayson Schultz has also written a helpful guide for partners of kinky or kink-curious disabled people.

The Disability After Dark podcast, hosted by disability awareness consultant Andrew Gurza, covers a broad spectrum of disabled people’s sexual practices and desires, including those on the kinkier side of the spectrum. 

The Bump’n Book of Love, Lust and Disability - Andrew Gurza Jess Tarpey Katy Venables (physical book, e-book and audio book)

KinkAcademy.com is a subscription-based site that offers hundreds of instructional videos about various different kinks. There are plenty of useful tips in their disability section.