Safety Basics: Using Intimacy Aids After Injury or Disability
If you're using an intimacy aid for the first time — or trying something new after an injury, surgery, or a change in your health — a bit of basic safety knowledge goes a long way. This isn't about being overly cautious or taking the fun out of things. It's the same principle that applies to any piece of adaptive equipment: used well, it makes life better; used without any guidance, it can cause problems that were easy to avoid.
We're not going to pretend to be the clinical experts here — that's not our role, and we'd rather point you to the people who are. Some of what follows is drawn from the Agency for Clinical Innovation's (ACI) clinical guideline on sexuality and spinal cord injury, which is a genuinely excellent, free resource if you want to go deeper. The rest is just plain, practical good sense that comes up again and again when we talk to the clinicians and specialists we work alongside.
Follow the instructions that come with the product
It sounds obvious, but it's the single biggest thing that gets missed. Every piece of equipment we supply comes with manufacturer instructions for a reason — recommended session length, frequency of use, charging requirements, cleaning instructions, and so on. If a product says not to use it for more than a set period of time, or not more than once in a 48-hour window, that's not a marketing suggestion. It's there because using equipment outside its intended parameters is one of the main reasons people end up with a problem that was completely preventable.
If in doubt, less is more to start with. You can always build up. You can't undo an injury.
Know your own risk factors
Depending on your injury, condition, or health history, there may be specific things you need to be aware of before using any kind of intimacy aid. A few examples that come up often:
● Autonomic dysreflexia (AD) — if you have a spinal cord injury at T6 or above, you may be at risk of AD, which is a medical emergency. If you don't already know your risk level and what to watch for, this is a conversation to have with your GP, rehab specialist, or treating team before you start using new equipment.
● Skin integrity — reduced sensation can mean you don't get the usual warning signs of irritation, pressure, or friction. Check your skin regularly, particularly after trying something new, and stop if you notice redness, swelling, or breakdown that doesn't resolve quickly.
● Reduced sensation generally — if you can't fully feel what's happening, it's easy to use a product for longer or more intensely than you realise. This is exactly why the manufacturer's stated limits matter more, not less.
None of this is designed to alarm you. It's the same conversation an OT or physio has with you about pressure care or skin checks in any other part of daily life — this is just applying the same thinking here.
When in doubt, loop in a healthcare professional
We always recommend using intimacy aids in consultation with a healthcare professional where there's any uncertainty — particularly if you're managing a spinal cord injury, brain injury, or another condition with specific risk factors. This might be your GP, your OT, a rehab specialist, a continence nurse, a pelvic floor physio, or a psychosexual therapist, depending on what you're navigating. If you're not sure who to ask, ask us — we can usually point you in the right direction, even if it's not us doing the prescribing.
If something goes wrong with the product
Every product we supply comes with at least a 12-month warranty. If something isn't working the way it should, don't push through it or try to force a fix — get in touch and we'll sort out a replacement. If it's a functional fault (rather than user error), we'll generally ask for a short video showing the issue so we can get it actioned with our supplier quickly.
The bottom line
Adaptive intimacy equipment exists to make sex and intimacy safer, easier, and more accessible after injury or with a disability — not to introduce new risk. The way to make sure it does that job well is simple: read the instructions, know your own risk factors, and loop in the right professional when something's outside your knowledge. That's it. Everything else is just about finding what works for you.
For more detailed clinical guidance, the ACI's clinical guideline on sexuality and spinal cord injury is a genuinely useful resource and worth reading in full.
About the author
Louise Whitton is an occupational therapist and the founder of Focus on Intimacy. She has spent the past fifteen years working in catastrophic injury management across regional NSW, and leads a team of allied health clinicians and nurses at Focus on Function in Tamworth, Armidale and Gunnedah.