Godfrey Kangaude - Godfrey Kangaude

Godfrey Kangaude

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Godfrey Kangaude

Godfrey is an advocate and scholar for sexual and reproductive justice based in Malawi

It is masturbation month yaay! Let us talk masturbation.

It is masturbation month yaay! Let us talk masturbation.

The month of May is masturbation month! I did not know this until a few weeks ago. This month I was invited to give a talk on young people and mental health concerning sexual and reproductive health and rights at the African Union’s Youth Pre – STC conference. I was

My daily prayer

My daily prayer

I have been going through some rough patches in my life. I look okay on the outside but am pretty much a broken fella inside. I grew up in a religious family (Catholic) and went to the seminary too. Some of my challenges trace way back to the seminary when

Take it easy? No, I must work hard to make it!

Take it easy? No, I must work hard to make it!

Here I am on 20th December. The book chapter proof is back with the email heading 'Address the proofs by 4 January 2023'. I am grappling with another book chapter. I had messed up the references, the deadline was end November 2022. And oh the funding for the

An unexpected touch of love

An unexpected touch of love

I have been unmotivated to post anything on my blog for the past two weeks. Meanwhile, I have had lengthy conversations with my friends and colleagues about love. I started to feel that perhaps I was overdoing this. Maybe I am overcompensating for the time I should have thought and

Do we need help with how to love better?

Do we need help with how to love better?

I remember when we first arrived as freshmen at Flinders Medical School in Adelaide, Australia, that was in 1993 when I was 19. We were taken around Flinders University Campus on orientation. When we got to the school of psychology, our guide told us that we could come here counselling

Inspired by an extraordinary adolescent - Aisha Chaudhary

Inspired by an extraordinary adolescent - Aisha Chaudhary

My blog post today is inspired by Aisha Chaudhary. I first learned about Aisha through the movie "The Sky is Pink", based on her life story. Aisha left this world at 18 because of an illness that made it progressively difficult for her to breathe. Before she died,

Fear of rejection - how boys mess up love and romance

Fear of rejection - how boys mess up love and romance

I had to summon up a little more courage than usual to write this blog because I feel embarrassed to admit that my love and romantic life have been pretty much messed up. In any case, I will still write about how the fear of rejection is real for boys

It is the emotional support that our daughters need

It is the emotional support that our daughters need

Let me start by putting to you these facts: 1. At puberty, the biophysiological events in the human body prime the person to become interested in sex, love and romance 2. It is normal for adolescents from the age of 10 years to engage in lower-level sexual behaviours and progressively

Please save our little girls: An appeal to Malawi's Attorney General

Please save our little girls: An appeal to Malawi's Attorney General

On 17thDecember 2021, I convened a meeting at Ufulu Gardens Hotel in Lilongwe. The aim of the meeting was to discuss Malawi's legal position on the termination of pregnancy for pregnant girls below the age of 18, whose pregnancy is due to sexual violation. Health professionals attended the

Why are we not talking about dental dams in Africa?

Why are we not talking about dental dams in Africa?

Intro - sexual safety Sexual safety is one of the elements of sexual well-being and mental health. Protective sexual behaviours such as using condoms and dental dams increase sexual safety and reduce the risks of unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Heard about dental dams? I am sure that

A brutally honest Brad Pitt

A brutally honest Brad Pitt

I posted a note on sexual wellbeing and mental health in which I defined some terms describing sexual and mental well-being. And boom! Here comes Brad Pitt (one of my favorite actors) to provide me with a practical application of one of the terms: Forgiveness of past (sexual) experiences We

Notes on sexual wellbeing and mental health

Notes on sexual wellbeing and mental health

Sexual wellbeing is an essential aspect of our mental health. We cannot be truly happy if we do not actively maintain a certain level of sexual wellbeing in whatever mode of life, whether single, married or celibate. In this note, I share definitions of terms adapted from an article by

A parent's thoughts about teen love

A parent's thoughts about teen love

The Global Early Adolescent Study (GEAS) found that adolescents between 10 and 14 in Blantyre engage in romantic relationships. Some already initiate sex. Teen love can be a positive experience as part of growing up. In this blog, I share thoughts about how teens can make the best of this

Blaming girls: A peek at gender analysis of sexuality

Blaming girls: A peek at gender analysis of sexuality

In the study to evaluate health services provided to young people, the researchers asked parents what they thought about the challenges youth face, for instance, unwanted pregnancies and HIV/AIDS. Check out what the parents said (these are quotes from the evaluation report). Let us start with the views of

Delaying teen sexual debut

Delaying teen sexual debut

As a parent, I share with other parents the hope that our teenager does not start to engage in sexual intercourse too soon. But the billion Kwacha question is how do we assist teens in delaying sex? In this blog, I discuss how parents could approach this project. Introduction One

Is there male and female sexual desire?

Is there male and female sexual desire?

We are socialised to believe that men are hardwired to pursue their sexual desire and that inevitably it drives them to pursue the objects of that desire - women. We are made to believe this is the nature of male sexual desire. It justifies that men do the pursuing and

On delaying teen sex

On delaying teen sex

[I realise I will have to reorganise my blog site, to include a category on notes. Notes would be like raw stuff I come across but may later process into a blog] If you are a parent, this quote from Ahna Ballonoff Suleiman and others, in their article entitled "

Teen dating is 'unAfrican', but early marriage is ok

Teen dating is 'unAfrican', but early marriage is ok

African parents who care about their teen who has prospects of a bright future from a good education will be careful to not encourage their teen, especially the girl, to be dating. The typical advice from parents to their daughter would be something like - "My daughter, please focus

The Kenya elections, sex, and wives...peace to the Kenyan homes

The Kenya elections, sex, and wives...peace to the Kenyan homes

My last post was rather philosophical as I attempted to define sexuality. It is a term that is rather complex. I did end up saying something like sexuality is the core of our being human and it is not just about sex. I also pointed out that sexuality is many

What do you believe about sexuality?

What do you believe about sexuality?

What we believe or do not believe about sexuality, even if we might never have thought about that, structures our relationships. The importance of understanding our beliefs about sexuality is that we shall not act in ignorance. Further, we might even pursue our dreams with much more conscious choices than

"When I heard my daughter had her first menses, I cried..."

"When I heard my daughter had her first menses, I cried..."

Some years ago, we were having this conversation when my colleague shared about the spontaneous emotion he felt when he heard the news that his daughter had had her first menses. He told us he 'cried'. What he said had stuck with me for a long time, and

"Menstruation, a sign of good health, must be normalised, and celebrated"

"Menstruation, a sign of good health, must be normalised, and celebrated"

I am grappling with writing a book chapter. I have entitled it "The nexus between COVID-19 and Sexual and Reproductive Health of Adolescents: Bringing adolescents ‘home’". I am not going to talk about the book chapter in this post, but just the heading of the post. I was