How Social Media Censorship is Impacting Women's Sexual Health

CONTENT WARNING: Sexual assault

Did you know that it takes only 3.5 years to sail around the world but up to 10 years to get an endometriosis diagnosis? That three out of four women experience pain during intercourse at some point in their lives? Or that nearly half of all women aged 18 to 35 have trouble reaching orgasm with a partner, and most women don't score their sexual satisfaction as very high?

These statistics are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the vast spectrum of issues that women face with regards to their reproductive and sexual health.

And did you know that women, like myself, who try to talk about this -- and even things like birth and breastfeeding, on social media platforms have been censored while overtly sexual ads for male issues are overtly promoted?

Unfortunately, this pervasive culture of censorship silences crucial information from being shared among women and hinders progress towards achieving equity and wellbeing around important women's health issues.

Enter Jackie Rotman, founder and CEO of the Center for Intimacy Justice. Jackie is an inspiring activist and creative whose work on social media equity has been instrumental in changing policies so that women's voices can be heard and women's health needs can be more openly discussed on Meta (Facebook, Instagram).

Join me for this latest On Health episode where Jackie and I discuss:

The pleasure gap: what it is and why it needs to change

Why women's reports of sexual satisfaction are so much different than men's

How internet censorship around women's health affects our knowledge and empowerment

The personal experiences that inspired Jackie to focus her substantial intellectual power on internet censorship and sexual health bias

How stifling and censoring women's health affects the reach of business by women, for women, and favors the growth of men's businesses into the women's health space.

This is a must-listen episode for all of us trying to find health information and thrive in our modern internet world.

Thank you so much for taking the time to tune in to your body, yourself, and this podcast! Please share the love by sending this to someone in your life who could benefit from the kinds of things we talk about in this space. Make sure to follow your host on Instagram @dr.avivaromm and go to avivaromm.com to join the conversation. Follow Jackie @jackierotman1 and check out The Center for Intimacy Justice