One British website provides the potentially scarring mental image of vaginal birth as "akin to a small explosion.” On that note, there are some obvious physical challenges to sex after childbirth. Things will take time to heal, especially if you had an episiotomy — if you’re curious about the specifics of that topic, there’s an episiotomy-related horror story in the links below. Doctors have traditionally advised waiting until your postnatal check-up, six weeks after childbirth, before even thinking about sex. But more recently, some say that you can start earlier, on the off chance that you feel ready. Many say the physical side is just half the story: post-pregnancy hormonal changes affect your sex drive, as do sleepless nights. Many women just aren’t that interested in sex during the first months after childbirth. Once you start doing it again, let Britney Spears be a cautionary tale. Unless you want back-to-back pregnancies, contraceptives might be a good idea.
Netdoctor
"Sex After Giving Birth"
"Please don’t expect that everything will instantly return to normal. Men are particularly likely to believe this; a lot of young blokes think that they’ll be able to have intercourse as soon as their partner gets home from hospital. But that just isn’t true. You see, childbirth is a pretty traumatic process for a woman. Having a baby pass through her vagina is almost like having a small explosion go off inside her." …read the full article
ABC News
"Sex After Childbirth: A Painful Topic"
"I wasn’t shocked when I had a difficult birth — twenty-four hours of labour, including four hours of pushing, an episiotomy and a ventouse extraction (where a suction cap [is] fitted to the baby’s head to help deliver it).The shock came after the event, when I summoned up the courage to use a mirror to look at the damage." …read the full article
BabyCenter Australia ®
"Sex After Childbirth"
"New mothers feel reluctant or uninterested for a variety of reasons. The most obvious is soreness from an episiotomy and stitches. Even if you haven’t had an episiotomy or a tear, the perineal area can feel bruised and sensitive for some time. It makes sense to let the wound heal and the stitches dissolve before you have intercourse. " …read the full article
Raising Children Network
Having Sex Again
"You don’t need to wait until the postnatal check if you and your partner feel you are ready for sex. If you feel comfortable, and bleeding has just about stopped, it is OK (unless your doctor has advised otherwise). However, the first try may be a little difficult, especially if you feel anxious, which is likely. Take it slowly and use some lubrication if you need to. If it is too painful, try again in a week or so, when healing is more complete. " …read the full article
Pregnancy Today
"Easing Back Into Intimacy"
"Even once the uterine bleeding has ceased, other physical changes such as sore breasts or vaginal dryness and tenderness from the delivery can also dampen a new mom’s sex drive. ‘Fatigue is [also] a tremendous issue,’ Kropp says. ‘The common thread that I hear is that sleep is so important that lovemaking can be considered a waste of good sleep time. This is perfectly understandable, as none of us do well with little or no sleep for long.’" …read the full article
