I am a man and was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at a young age, and overtime lost the ability to perform sexually in my late teens. I imagine the struggle women who have abortions or how they are denied basic reproducer health rights, and from my bizarre lived experience I empathize the struggle. Making a doctors appointment and fearing the perceived stigma of loved ones from opening about a deeply intimate, stressful, and personal experience. I always asked, “Who would understand what I’m going through?” None of the diabetics I know are male, so I thought I was alone in my struggle.

That was until the SYA movement. As contrary as the movement might seem to a male who hasn’t been sexually active in over a decade, I was inspired by the collective strength of each woman’s story. Suddenly, I realize that I didn’t have to suffer in silence nor relegate myself to be a silent curmudgeon. I cannot directly understand how difficult it must be, especially considering the unfounded backlash from the conservative community. If I explain my problem to those folks, I receive pity and well wishes. I can’t foresee the same reaction to a woman confessing about an abortion to the same folks.

Male reproductive rights are not a serious concern of mine. Even if I am denied medically necessary treatment to regain sexual ability, the overwhelming plight of women seeking to proliferate reproductive rights and acceptance trumps any cause I might myself be burdened with. Were I to choose to cure my diabetes and retain lost ability, I would rather elect for women to have equitable access to dignity, respect, and understanding in order to instill pragmatic, just, and compassionate treatment of women’s choice regardless of circumstance.