A woman can return to a full sexual life only six weeks after giving birth. Otherwise, sex can lead to a host of complications, including infections, bleeding, and poor healing of the vagina and uterus if stitched. Gemotest Laboratory candidate of medical sciences, obstetrician-gynecologist Olga Ulankina told socialbites.ca about this.
Six weeks is the late postpartum period, which begins the day after the birth of the child. Changes that occur in the female body at this time are called involution – internal organs and systems return to the “pre-pregnancy” state. The main changes occur in the uterus and birth canal. Sex can interfere with normal healing and recovery during this period.
“The cervix, which opens as much as possible at the time of birth and frees the child to enter the birth canal, also does not close immediately after birth. The inner os before the entrance to the uterus closes only on the 10th day after birth, and the outer os (located just behind the vagina) returns to its normal state after 3 weeks. If you have sexual intercourse in the first 4-6 weeks after delivery, you can infect the uterus and cause inflammation. This is a serious postpartum complication that is usually treated with antibiotics. And this means that for a while you have to stop breastfeeding, ”explained Ulankina.
In the first week after birth, the uterus contracts actively. It doesn’t matter if the birth was natural or the child was born by cesarean section, where the placenta attaches in the womb – the “baby place” – the wound surface is preserved. The specialist noted that after only 4-6 weeks he completely recovers – at the same time, postpartum discharge from the vagina (lochia) in a woman normally stops.
“Natural birth is often accompanied by tears and tissue cuts in the perineum, vagina, and cervix. Recovery and recovery also usually takes at least a month. With cesarean section, the cervix is not injured and practically does not change, but after surgery it contracts more slowly. Within a month, a strong and complete scar is formed,” added Ulankina.
Before the onset of sexual activity, she advised to come to a scheduled appointment with a specialist gynecologist. The doctor will examine you and make sure that the healing is uneventful, the uterus has reduced to its normal size, and there are no signs of inflammation. This will mean that there are no medical contraindications for returning to sexual activity.