Sex, Intimacy and Living with Life-Shortening Conditions

Book excerpt: This multi-disciplinary and inclusive collection brings together theoretically informed and empirically focused research on sex, intimacy and reproduction in relation to young people and adults with life-shortening conditions. Advances in healthcare mean that increasing numbers of young people with life-shortening conditions are transitioning into adulthood. Issues such as sex and intimacy, dating and relationships, fertility and having children are increasingly relevant to them and to the people that support them, including families, carers, practitioners and professional education, health and social care agencies. This three-part book explores the relevance and significance of this field, examines everyday experiences, and highlights the challenges faced by individuals and organisations in addressing the needs of such people in daily life and in the context of practice. Drawing on perspectives from sociology, disability studies, epidemiology, health policy, psychotherapy, legal studies, queer studies and nursing, this ground-breaking volume is written by academics, policy makers, practitioners and experts by experience. It is an essential read for all those practising and researching in the fields of sexuality, chronic illness and disability and transition.