Page 349 - RUICHSS 2023 Proceeding

University of Ruhuna ISSN: 2706-0063
Matara, Sri Lanka

4. Review of the Literature

Sexual and reproductive health is integral to overall health, well-being, and

quality of life. It is a state of physical, emotional, mental, and social well-being

concerning sexuality and not merely the absence of disease, dysfunction, or
infirmity (World Health Organization, 2019). Essential steps in this

transitional process are several critical life events such as puberty, initiation to
sexuality, marriage, and childbearing. These events' timing, sequence, and

context have immediate and long-term repercussions for sexual and

reproductive health. Generally, adolescence is associated with rapid physical
growth, in which a gradual development of reproductive organs occurs, along

with the appearance of gender-specific secondary sex characteristics and
menarche in girls (Suranga, 2019).

Disability, when viewed from a charitable perspective, is typically defined as

a physical or intellectual impairment, often intertwined with the concept of
karma, which justifies inequalities among individuals. This construct

profoundly impacts all aspects of the daily lives of people with disabilities.
Discrimination against this group often begins within families and is

perpetuated by more comprehensive social institutions (Liyanage, 2017). The
socio-cultural framing of disability significantly influences the experiences of

students with disabilities, forcing them to navigate exclusion from family,

community, school, and university settings.

Their lives are based on compassion, not full empowerment of persons with

disabilities. According to the study's findings, although there is an opportunity
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