Brad Dickinson/Student Life Staff “You just mentioned the big “O”. Well, how do you get that?” asked a young woman of Dr. Drew Pinsky on Sunday.
MTV Loveline and radio show host Dr. Drew spoke at Graham Chapel and fielded questions from the audience on Sunday evening at the end of the Student Health Advisory Committee’s Sex Week “Climax” event.
Dr. Drew is not your average doctor. As a third year student at the University of Southern California School of Medicine in 1983, he started the call-in radio show “Loveline.” It began when he volunteered to answer a few questions at a local radio station.
Dr. Drew, now in the eighteenth year of what has grown to be a nationally-syndicated radio show, also televised on MTV, has become the trusted source of medical advice for millions of young adults, including college females trying to achieve orgasm.
“Oral sex, and get into a stable relationship. And you can quote me in that order,” answered Dr. Drew for the young woman.
Dr. Drew’s trusted advice, however, is not simply related to sex, but developing what he refers to as the “holistic person,” a combination of mental and physical health.
“I hope what you all will take away tonight is a new thinking about instinct and how important it is to listen to that little voice inside you,” said Dr. Drew. “Very rarely it will lead you astray.”
Whether being applied to questions of escaping abusive relationships, communicating with overbearing parents, making good career choices, or managing long distant relationships, Dr. Drew drove home to the audience the importance of gut reactions, but not without the captivating humor that makes him so well liked.
“She’s just getting play, and you’re not,” Dr. Drew poked fun at the freshman who was unhappy with the open terms of his long distance relationship with his girlfriend.
A number of the questions that Dr. Drew answered were specific to Washington University and its co-ed floor living arrangements. A freshman RA wanted to know how to deal with the “hook ups” amongst residents on her floor, and another student asked if the sexual tension produced by co-ed living arrangements still left room for platonic relationships. Dr. Drew’s only advice to the RA was “good luck,” but he went further into the importance of forming friendships in college.
“What makes life meaningful are the relationships in life. And in college, those relationships help you begin to figure out who you are, and how to relate your peers,” said Dr.
Drew.
Throughout the night students asked questions that showed a lack of knowledge of health and counseling resources available to WU students. Dr. Drew deferred a number of questions to Dr. Laurie Reitman, director of Student Health and Counseling Services (SHCS), and her staff who promoted a number of services ranging from sexuality support groups and counseling recourses to staff gynecologists. Other people also used the open mic forum to promote SARAH, Uncle Joe’s Peer Counsling, and other student initiatives.
“Part of going to these fabulous universities means you have fabulous resources, including heath resources available to you. Use them. Take advantage of what you have,” said Dr. Drew.
Dr. Drew also suggested that SHCS make the resources more accessible to students, especially those that might not be comfortable coming to SHCS, through the web. Dr. Drew started his own website DrDrew.com to reach a larger audience.
When asked about MTV, Dr. Drew was poignant in his response.
“MTV sucks!..They have to have more shows to talk about the consequences of the behaviors depicted in much of their programming. They just don’t do enough of that. That’s why they suck.”
Dr. Drew is very open when listening to young people talk about their sexual behaviors, addiction, and other choices, but stresses the consequences of those actions as well. In what he called his five minute public service announcement, he talked about the dangers of drug addictions, particularly ecstasy, LSD, and marijuana, which he warned can cause depression, anxiety, and obsessive-compulsive disorders, and can even lead to suicide.
“That’s my public service announcement,” said Dr. Drew. “Now let’s get back to sex.”
Dr. Drew, however, also worked in other public service announcements. He talked about the difference between the morning-after-pill, which prevents ovulation when taken in the first seventy-hours after sexual intercourse, and the abortion pill RU486. He also dispelled the misconception that STDs cannot be spread through oral sex. He stressed that safe sex means using proper sexual protection which includes a condom during oral sex.
There are plenty of condoms floating around after WU’s sex week, and armed with Dr. Drew’s advice, student’s are prepared for “Longer, Stronger, and More Responsible” sex.