When it comes to sexual health, every college student knows the basics: get tested for sexually transmitted diseases and always use condoms. But the things campus health services don't talk about can pose serious risks to students' physical and mental health.
Last Friday, Dr. Miriam Grossman visited the National Press Club in Washington , D.C. to discuss her new book, Unprotected. You probably haven't heard of it. Grossman, a psychiatrist at UCLA's student health clinic, says her profession has been "hijacked" by radical politics. Unprotected reveals how campus health professionals often risk students' well-being in order to promote feminism, androgyny, and "anything goes" liberalism. The consequences can be devastating.
Keep in mind that Grossman is not a political or religious ideologue. She's a psychiatrist whose clinic has treated thousands of patients, many of them self-destructive or even suicidal. And yet, despite the epidemics of eating disorders, self-mutilation, and sexually transmitted diseases among college students, many of Grossman's colleagues refuse to offer advice or treatment that obstructs their personal social agendas.
According to Grossman, many campus health professionals' first priority is to never make moral judgments about students' behavior. There is tacit approval of casual sex: student health services pass out free condoms and instruct students on their use. But they won't mention the psychological health risks of promiscuity -- which Grossman says is a major cause of emotional disturbance among her female patients.
When Dr. Grossman sees a patient reporting depression or excessive self-criticism, she often discovers, with a little prodding, that the cause is a casual relationship that has produced unreciprocated attachment. Her claims are supported by neurobiological research, which reveals that women are hard-wired to attach to sexual partners.
Oxytocin is to blame. Released during both breastfeeding and sex, this hormone creates feelings of trust and attachment. The only problem is that oxytocin is unable to discriminate between a faithful, committed partner and a one-night stand whose last priority is commitment. Thanks to biology, a woman who allows an endless parade of men through her bedroom is putting her mental health at risk.
This fact is largely unknown to college women, who have grown up with the feminist myth that women respond to casual sex the same way men do. Many engage in multiple hook-ups or get involved with a "friend with benefits." Dr. Grossman's office is overflowing with these women, who usually claim to have no idea why they're depressed.
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