Shannon Boodram aka Shan Boody is a YouTuber. She is a sex and relationship expert, an author, a entrepreneur, has her own website, a counselor, and a certified bad-ass!
Story time!
During my freshman year of high school, I attended a co-ed Catholic school. We had gym class every Tuesday and health class every Thursday. On Thursdays, my teacher would tell us to read a chapter in our book and hand in the questions at the end of class. Then, he would put his feet up on the desk and read his newspaper until class was over. Most of the book was about nutrition and physical health, not sexual health. Needless to say, everything I learned about sexuality was through experience, mom lectures, friends, or Google. I never had any “proper training.”
Growing up, there was always such a harsh stigma around sex. It was basically similar to how it is explained in the movie Mean Girls:
Okay, maybe not that harsh, but that was how it felt to me.
When I hit the point in my life where I was ready to explore that side of life, my subconscious hit me with guilt and shame. All of the slut shaming and other stigmas about women engaging in sex that I had heard made me scared of even asking too many questions about it. One day, I discovered Shan Boody’s videos on YouTube and my perspective, and life had changed. It was the very first time I had heard a woman talk about sex positivity, emotional health, different relationship styles, and so much more. These are things that can be vulnerable but are a part of life, so it was nice to find a space to learn more about them, from someone that knows their stuff!
This is part of the reason I was so grateful to find Shan Boody online.
She creates sex positive and inclusive content that is easy to access. It was the first time I had known a woman to speak candidly about sexuality and sexual health without reservations, judgments, or awkwardness. She is informative and hilarious. She shows the world that sex education doesn’t have to be boring or uncomfortable; it can be discussed openly and objectively. As adolescents or adults we must remember that knowledge is power. I learned through her videos that it is so important to arm yourself with the right information, because there is so much misinformation out there.
Shan Boody also speaks openly about her life experiences.
She bravely lets the world into her own world by sharing story times about her love life, her sex life, even past jobs she has had. She shares so much about her personal life to help others understand their own. Although some of her conversations people may see as challenging, it opens the door for conversation. Her YouTube videos give viewers a different perspective and if you watch, it might even open your mind to something new.
She doesn’t only have beauty, but also brains!
Shannon Boodram is someone we could all learn from. Sex isn’t something that has to be taboo, it is a biological need and a part of life in all species. It is not that she is promoting or denouncing promiscuity (nor am I), it is that she is promoting knowledge and awareness to a process that is a part of life.