• About
  • Contact
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
Pregged.com
  • Getting Pregnant
    • Am I Pregnant?
    • Unplanned Pregnancy
    • Miscarriage
  • Pregnancy
    • Pregnancy Symptoms
    • Pregnancy Health
    • Mental Health
    • 1st Trimester
    • 2nd Trimester
    • 3rd Trimester
  • Week by Week
  • Relationships
    • Dads
  • Getting Ready
    • Labor
    • Birth
    • Postpartum
    • Baby
    • Baby Names
    • Baby Astrology
    • Breastfeeding
  • Shop
    • Pregnancy Products
    • Maternity Wear
    • Baby Gear
    • Diapers
    • Postpartum Products
    • Gift Ideas
  • Getting Pregnant
    • Am I Pregnant?
    • Unplanned Pregnancy
    • Miscarriage
  • Pregnancy
    • Pregnancy Symptoms
    • Pregnancy Health
    • Mental Health
    • 1st Trimester
    • 2nd Trimester
    • 3rd Trimester
  • Week by Week
  • Relationships
    • Dads
  • Getting Ready
    • Labor
    • Birth
    • Postpartum
    • Baby
    • Baby Names
    • Baby Astrology
    • Breastfeeding
  • Shop
    • Pregnancy Products
    • Maternity Wear
    • Baby Gear
    • Diapers
    • Postpartum Products
    • Gift Ideas
Home » Baby » Postpartum » Does Sex Feel the Same After Giving Birth Vaginally?

Does Sex Feel the Same After Giving Birth Vaginally?

  Written by Feature Editor
   Medically reviewed by Dr Kristy June Dinampo
  Updated on June 14th, 2023
Does Sex Feel the Same After Giving Birth Vaginally?

Sex after giving birth. It’s on every new Mom’s mind at some point during or after pregnancy.

Will it hurt?

How long until you’ll be able to get intimate with your partner again?

Will it feel less intense?

The questions are endless, and it’s not always easy to ask the other mothers in your life about their experience of sex after birth.

So here are the answers to the questions you wanted to ask.

How soon after giving birth can you have sex?

It depends.

Physically, it’s recommended that you wait at least 6 weeks after giving birth to give your body time to heal.

But many women don’t feel ready within 6 weeks.

For example, if you had vaginal tearing during birth, had an episiotomy or if you are still experiencing postpartum pain or bleeding, your body might need more time.

That’s OK.

It’s your body, and your body has been through a lot. 

The wound left by the placenta is initially as big as a dinner plate and the cervix needs to close up tight again.

You can take the time you need and should not be under any pressure to have intercourse before you feel ready.

Emotional Recovery 

But it’s not only physical healing that determines when you want to start having sex again.

Pregnancy, labor and then the early weeks of Momhood mean that you have lots of powerful hormones working in your body, and you’re likely to feel a range of different emotions.

Some women need to take time to recover emotionally from birth too.

Labor can change your perspective on your body, and sexual desire might flat-line for a while.

Equally, some women recover very quickly from birth, both physically and emotionally, and feel intense sexual desire shortly afterwards.

It’s all fine — every new Mom responds differently to the physical, mental and emotional changes that take place.

Listen to your body and to your desire, and try to keep an open conversation going with your partner so that you can find your way back to the bedroom together in your own time.

What does it feel like the first time you have sex after birth?

Again, this depends on how your birth went and how quickly you heal.

In general, it’s normal to expect some discomfort or soreness in your vagina when you first have sex.

It might take a few months for this to ease completely and get back to feeling the same as before you gave birth.

Remember that if it feels painful and you don’t want to continue, you can always tell your partner you want to stop.

It’s important for both of you to respect the huge experience that your body has been through and allow time for recovery.

 

Will My VJ be the Same as Before?

Some women may feel that their vagina is wider or more loose than usual at least in the first few months after delivery.

It’s also common to feel that the vagina is more dry as well in which case it can be helpful to use lube to make it more comfortable.

And some women find that the vagina feels more tense, and even tighter due to healing stitches after an episiotomy or tearing.

In time though, sex will start to feel normal again.

If it doesn’t, and you continue to struggle with pain or discomfort during sex, talk to your doctor about this and request a check-up.

It’s always worth making sure there are no underlying issues that need medical care.

It takes time to get used to the changes

Lots of new Moms find that they have a changed relationship with their bodies and with sex after having a baby.

It may be a while before you really feel like yourself again, and postnatal depression or anxiety can also affect how you feel about sex.

After giving birth you might feel proud, powerful and strong — or you might feel strange and less sexy.

However you feel, know that you are not alone and that you don’t have to have sex until you are ready.

Talk to your partner and be honest.

You might find that cuddles, talking and sexual touching will help to reignite your passion and make you feel intimately connected with each other without having intercourse right away.

When you do have sex again, take it slow.

Tell your partner beforehand that you’re not sure how it’s going to feel, and if you do need to ask him to stop, curl up for a cuddle and enjoy a few moments of closeness together without sex.

Sources:

  1. https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/labor-and-delivery/in-depth/sex-after-pregnancy/art-20045669
  2. https://www.webmd.com/sex-relationships/news/20190214/is-there-a-right-time-for-sex-after-childbirth#1
  3. https://www.urmc.rochester.edu/ob-gyn/obstetrics/after-delivery/resuming-intimacy.aspx
  4. https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/sexual-health/vagina-changes-after-childbirth/
  5. http://www.bumc.bu.edu/sexualmedicine/informationsessions/renewing-your-sex-life-after-childbirth/
  6. https://www.jognn.org/article/S0884-2175(15)32578-8/fulltext
 

Related Posts

  • The Chinese Gender Prediction Calendar – A Guide
  • Faint Pregnancy Test Line is Very Light – Am I Pregnant or Not?
  • 7 Remarkable Facts About Baby Eye Color
Trending Now
Can Eating Cinnamon Cause Miscarriage? How Much is Safe?

Can Eating Cinnamon Cause Miscarriage? How Much is Safe?

Pregnancy is a period when expectant mothers become more cautious about their diet, considering the potential impact on their health and the well-being of their

14 of the Best Foods to Eat During Pregnancy for a Super Healthy Baby

14 of the Best Foods to Eat During Pregnancy for a Super Healthy Baby

As an expecting Mom we wish for nothing more than to deliver a perfectly healthy baby. So it’s no wonder that the subject of healthy

Read more...
9 Ways to Have a Baby on a Tight Budget

9 Ways to Have a Baby on a Tight Budget

Sadly a money tree has yet to be discovered which means that more and more of us are on tight budgets. Couples who have dreams

Read more...
6 Ways to Deal With the Fear of Miscarriage

6 Ways to Deal With the Fear of Miscarriage

Written by Psychologist, Nikolina Miljus You may not realize but the fear of miscarriage haunts every woman during the early stages of pregnancy. Whether it’s our

Read more...
Eating Saffron in Pregnancy — Is it Safe?

Eating Saffron in Pregnancy — Is it Safe?

Saffron is a bright crimson-colored and very expensive spice, also called Kesar. It’s a dried form of part of the Crocus Sativus flower, which grows

Read more...
Should I Buy a Home Fetal Doppler? Are They Safe?

Should I Buy a Home Fetal Doppler? Are They Safe?

Fetal dopplers for home use are now widely available and many parents-to-be understandably like the idea of being able to check on baby whenever they

Read more...
7 Ways to Stop Smoking in Pregnancy (that Actually Work)

7 Ways to Stop Smoking in Pregnancy (that Actually Work)

You’re pregnant — or you’re trying to get pregnant. And…you smoke. You probably already know that smoking and pregnancy are not a good combination. But

Read more...
Can I Take Antihistamines While I’m Pregnant? (Claritin®, Zyrtec® etc)

Can I Take Antihistamines While I’m Pregnant? (Claritin®, Zyrtec® etc)

Written by our resident Pharmacist, Yeniset Santana. Antihistamines are a common over the counter medication that most of us have used at one time or

Read more...
11 Gentle Ways to Start Labor Naturally

11 Gentle Ways to Start Labor Naturally

Picture the scene – you’re somewhere between 38 – 42 weeks pregnant and nothing seems to be happening. Not even getting any pre-labor symptoms. You’re

Read more...
What Does Heartburn Feel Like When You’re Pregnant?

What Does Heartburn Feel Like When You’re Pregnant?

Pregnancy tends to throw up countless weird and wonderful symptoms for us to cope with. These symptoms aren’t just related to your stomach area. Oh

Read more...
5 Reasons NOT to Worry About Pooping During Labor & Delivery

5 Reasons NOT to Worry About Pooping During Labor & Delivery

Are you freaking out about the thought of pooping during labor and delivery? Have those articles telling you how NOT to poop made you think

Read more...
What Does My Cervix Look and Feel Like During Pregnancy?

What Does My Cervix Look and Feel Like During Pregnancy?

So you’ve started reading about what happens to your body when you’re pregnant. Perhaps you’re already pregnant, and you’ve been to an appointment or two

Read more...
10 Ways Pregnancy Can Damage Your Body

10 Ways Pregnancy Can Damage Your Body

Pregnancy is a wonderful time, but during those magical nine months you may notice that you experience some rather odd symptoms. Fortunately, for the most

Read more...
Rectal Pain during Pregnancy (It Really is a Pain in the Butt)

Rectal Pain during Pregnancy (It Really is a Pain in the Butt)

What Causes Rectal Pain During Pregnancy? The reason is pretty simple—the uterus expands in size, the baby keeps growing, the placenta weighs another pound or

Read more...
How to Convert Weeks into Months During Pregnancy

How to Convert Weeks into Months During Pregnancy

Converting how many weeks pregnant you are into months pregnant is frankly pretty confusing. This is because months are not neatly packaged into exactly 4-week

Read more...
Join the Pregged Community
Follow us
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
Disclosure

Some of the links on Pregged lead to sites we are affiliated with, such as Amazon, and we may earn revenue from them.

The material on this website is provided for educational purposes only and is not to be used for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment, or in place of therapy or medical care. Use of this site is subject to our terms of use and privacy policy.

Links
  • About
  • Contact
  • T & C’s
  • Privacy Policy
Copyright © 2023 Pregged.com. All rights reserved