My knuckles turned white as I clutched the hospital bed rail, tears streaming down my face while my best friend and a nurse held my legs apart and another tried to stop the bleeding with gauze. People always say you’ll remember your first time for how awkward it is—but mine was marked by blood on the bed, carpet, and even three hospital rooms. After such a traumatic experience, I want to share this cautionary story as a reminder of why better sex education is so urgently needed.
