ABSTRACT
The 1990s have been marked by much activism by disabled people demanding their rights. Bills presented in parliament and disabled 'activists' taking to the streets are an expression of disabled people's wishes to be treated with respect and equality, to have the same rights and expectations as the rest of society. Disabled people have been and always will be sexual beings. The professional may have the medical information and expertise in dealing with a particular impairment, but the disabled person is the expert on his or her own condition. Catheters, colostomies or 'unsightly' lumps and bumps can seem insurmountable obstacles to relationship formation and fulfilling sex. Lack of access, negative attitudes to disabled people and poverty are the major barriers to meeting others for friendship and more intimate relationships. Following spinal cord injury, one of the main problems is often confidence and the need to reclaim one's body.
