Sexuality and Mental Illness

The issue of sexuality and the mentally ill provokes an uneasy reaction in many people. The lay person possesses inaccurate notions, for instance, about the levelof sexdrive or the expression thereof. Public interest and anxiety was recently fuelled by the case of Jeanette, the mentally handi capped woman for whom sterilisation was requested. ' Less understandable is the reaction of the more informed carers of the mentally ill. Being in such a position of responsibility raises a challenge, though the usual attitudes are of either ambivalence or denial. It was not then without some reser vations that we organised a group for young people with psychotic conditions, with the aim of tackling sexual issues in relationships. Social withdrawal, personality deterioration and reduced drive are described as features of chronic schizophrenia