Femtech Fes! Vol.3 "Sex and Tokyo: Everyone's Sexual Wellness"

Regardless of family or relationship status—whether single, partnered, in a long-distance relationship, or with children—sexual wellness is a part of everyone's daily lives, yet it somehow remains a difficult topic to discuss. But perhaps an online platform, where you don't have to show your face or name, might give people the courage to ask questions. With that in mind, we held the third Femtech Fes! "Sex and Tokyo: Everyone's Sexual Wellness Situation."

For this event, we were joined by special guest Sayaka Toda, a clinical psychologist and certified public psychologist, to unravel the state of sexual wellness around the world.

Amidst the spread of COVID-19, surprising news has been reported daily across various countries worldwide. In the UK, legal reforms were enacted to allow for online prescriptions of emergency contraception, and in New Zealand and Italy, sex toy sales tripled. Furthermore, due to a shortage of medical supplies, there were instances of condoms being used as gloves.

Even the fermata members heard about "Teledildonics" (sex toys that can be used long-distance) and "online host clubs" for the first time, and the "Sex Guide for the COVID-19 Pandemic" published by the New York City Department of Health also sparked lively discussions in the comments section.

In the latter half, we explored topics of interest using several keywords. Fermata members with different relationship statuses (single, living apart from a partner, living with a partner) participated and discussed changes and differences in their sexual wellness from their respective perspectives. Their personal anecdotes, such as "my sex drive has decreased," "we have video calls at fixed times every day," and "living in a studio apartment, I struggle with where and when to masturbate," drew numerous comments and questions from participants.