Sexual education classes, particularly in conservative areas, are notoriously terrible. In fact, in some states in the US it's perfectly legal and accepted for the teachers and curriculum to outright lie to students.
Typically speaking, the grounds for the deception is that teaching fact-based sexual education would encourage students, typically teens, to engage in "immoral" acts of sexuality. The unfortunate outcome is swaths of people with far less sexual knowledge than they need to keep themselves and their partners safe, healthy and happy.
Reddit user Evee_19020 asked:
What's one thing you wish you learned in sex ed?
It turns out a whole lot of people were left tragically under-educated by their sex ed programs. No, it wasn't just you. Here are some of the most popular responses.
Just Pee
"PEE AFTER SEX."
"Why is this important?"
"Not doing it increases your risk of UTIs."
"Think of a garden hose. And when it's sitting in the flower bed for a little while, and when you finally go to turn on the water, a little mud and dirty water comes out before the clean water starts flowing. Then it's great. That's why you pee after sex."
"Like, for the good lord and savior above, it ain't too much to ask, but both guys and girls need to clean out the pipes after intercourse."
"And yes, I know I sound like a worn out dishrag when I say it like that, but it is better than getting a UTI and having to find out it is because you don't know the body as good as you think."
"Obviously, or, I should phrase that as a "I hope", women know that... Right? Because your parts are so much more compact than guys, there is a lot higher chance of a UTI than for guys, but it is still there..."
What's It For?
"What's pubic hair for? I remember in sex ed I did ask that question, the entire class laughed at me, teacher shrugged and gave me a "dunno," and 25 years after the fact I still don't have an answer."
- llcucf80
"Reduces chaffing in a naturally sweaty region. Also provided a little protection for your ancestors giblets when they were marching through briers and dense brush in the nude."
Well Manicured
"Clip your nails, clean them, make sure there are no rough edges."
"Yeah, and file them down smooth afterwards too. Jagged edges aren't appreciated but well manicured fingers can end up almost anywhere."
The Steering Wheel
Giphy"In my sex ed class, there wasn't a single mention of the clitoris. Enough said."
"That's like taking drivers ed and not mentioning the steering wheel."
- deldge
Porn Isn't Real
"What we see in porn isn't normal sex."
- Forgiii
"To add to this, people don't realize how much hygienic care goes on behind the camera. Like, of course you have a UTI Stacy, you just told me how you let a guy go back to front because you saw it in a video and thought it'd be hot. They do a LOT of cleaning between takes."
"I explained to my kids that porn is like watching action movies. All fake and massively over the top to make it look interesting. Real sex is to porn like real fist fights are to action movies."
The Condom Conundrum
"How to use a condom. I went to a super religious school, so we only got taught not to have sex, not how to have it safely."
"My sex-ed teacher told us condoms don't work, because the latex has little holes, which are bigger than sperm."
"I think it was probably supposed to scare us off from sex but instead I just thought to not use a condom when having sex then, if it's that useless.He even drew a diagram: a gigantic circle for the latex gaps and a tiny dot for the sperm going through it."
"Thankfully my mom also educated me, imagine just going off of that class info!"
It's Not Just Baby
"After a woman gives birth she also has to push out the placenta. I thought the baby was just the only thing she pushed. (Also that the vagina can rip or be cut down to the anus.)"
"I had a friend who thought she was unknowingly having twins when she felt like pushing again after the baby was out. It was the placenta..."
- butwhyme
Moving On To Plan C
"That a pharmacist may refuse to sell you Plan B unless you are female, or because of their political and/or religious beliefs. Both of which I've encountered as a male with a worried partner embarrassed to enter the store."
"It didn't bother me so much, but it's worth noting to teens that this can be an obstacle (at least in America)."
"Also if you are over a certain weight one pill won't be enough."
"That the morning after pill is not as effective if you are over 150 pounds. You technically run the risk of it failing because the dose isn't high enough for your weight."
- Rezalina
Some STD Honesty
"That oral herpes can be transmitted to a partner's genitals. Always thought that they were two completely different diseases that effect different parts of the body. Turns out I was wrong."
"Also that HPV vaccines were available for boys, and that without being vaccinated there would be an almost 100% chance of contracting some form of HPV."
"Basically, I was just taught in sex ed, "Don't have sex, you could get STDs!" Ok..get real here, the sex was always going to happen. STDs didn't have to."
Like A Flower
Giphy"In order for sex to be fun as a woman you have to be wet. "Your body will open like a flower" clearly didn't get the message across to me."
- ommmlbox
"Is Everything Okay?"
"As a female, I never knew that women could also have orgasms. Was never mentioned in any class and my mom never had that talk with me. So imagine my surprise when at 17 I'm having sex and start having this crazy ass feeling down there! I hopped off and the guy is like "is everything okay?" And I'm like "yeaaah I think??" Lol. Still didn't figure that one out til months later."
Labia
"That my labia are normal. It's different for every woman, but there is this rumor that if you had a big labia, you were a whore. It's definitely not true because I've had one since I was a teenager and didn't have sex until I was 26."
"This always cracks me up because mine are noticeably asymmetrical. So, what, I'm a ho but only on one side?"
- iikratka
"always sleep on big decisions like surgery. but if you honest to god believe it will better your mental perception of your own body image, go for it."
There's so much to learn and we're clearly not giving the next generation enough information when it comes to things behind closed doors.
Do you have any to add? Let us know in the comments below.
@hebagowayed/Bluesky
@waitmanwbeorn/X
@eighthoften/Bluesky 
@antigonesdream/Bluesky 
A1