'Sexual Concerns - Approaches and Management'
Subtopic 3: Sexual Concerns: Approaches and Management – An Introduction 

Sexuality as we know is an important component of one’s well-being and concerns regarding it transpire across countries, cultures, genders and ages. Various service providers address some of these concerns in very many ways. One of the most common ways of dealing with these sexual concerns is by the medical community by clubbing and categorising these concerns into a set of disorders, which then need to be treated. In the process, people are usually compartmentalized as a group and the fact that individuals are unique and distinct from each other is completely disregarded. We know that sexual concerns affect different people in different ways and the manifestations of these problems also differ across a range of genders, cultures and ages.

Despite the fact that spaces to address sexual concerns are inadequate, different communities do find ways and avenues to address these concerns in part if not in whole. Apart from the medical community, other people in various cultures and sub-cultures are also known to come up with many indigenous and traditional ways of dealing with these concerns. Whereas a few of them work, a few others don’t.

It is interesting to study and observe these different kinds of spaces that do exist amongst us and who are these service providers or agencies that people chose to approach or gain access to. As individuals, which of these services are we comfortable with approaching and why? Which of these services do we have easy access to? Do we choose to call up a helpline or pose our questions to newspaper or magazine columns or to websites? Or do we feel more comfortable with approaching some traditional healers and taking pills and potions? Do people’s life circumstances also reflect upon the choice of these services? Would I feel equally comfortable to access as a transsexual person or a person with a disability? Do we feel that there should be a different set of services for the varying needs of individuals?

For the next two weeks, we will be examining these questions as a part of the forum discussion. Let’s put them under three main heads:

1. What are the ways and means people adopt to address their sexual concerns?
2. Do we feel that these sexual concerns get adequately addressed? If not,
   what are the remedies that we suggest?
3. Do we know of services that we think have been successful in dealing
   with these concerns?

Please feel free to write in your analyses, observations, thoughts,  comments, and examples addressing any, one, or all of the issues and questions raised above. Alternatively, please pose new questions and ideas you feel are relevant for this sub-topic.

After two weeks we will then move on to the last subtopic.

Subtopic 4: Sexual Concerns – What do Rights have to do with them?

We look forward to a lively and exciting discussion!

Arpita Das (Moderator)
The South and Southeast Asia Resource Centre on Sexuality