RaMa Mama Doula Share: Sex After Childbirth - A Healthy Approach To A Sensitive Topic...

Childbirth can sometimes leave a new mom with trauma and scars that take time to heal. Some women are overwhelmed after giving birth, and they are trying to adjust to a completely new reality. They may or may not be ready to have intercourse for months after having a child, and that is totally normal. Twenty-five percent of women who have given birth for the first time reported less sensation, satisfaction, and ability to orgasm during sex. Forty-one percent of women reported pain during intercourse after 3 months, and 22% after 6 months of having a baby. The pain can be due to scarring, vaginal atrophy, neuralgia, yeast infections, birth trauma, or a cesarian birth - to name a few reasons.

What can new mothers do to help heal the reproductive system and reignite a sexual spark? Vaginal scar massage can help her regain feeling, improve elasticity of the tissues, and reconnect a woman with her sexuality. Balancing the hormones can help to restore blood flow, discharge, and arousal fluids to get the juices flowing again. Strengthening the pelvic floor can help with painful sex, incontinence, constipation, UTI's, and pain in the pelvic and hip bones and joints. Breathing with the diaphragm can also be greatly helpful in opening the pelvic floor, calming the mind, and regulating pain. Finally, emotional healing through therapy, meditation, journaling, or other self-reflective practices can be integral in helping women heal trauma, fear, worry, and other emotional responses to the birthing experience. Whether it is one or all of these small efforts, investing time, Love, and energy into one's self-healing journey will be the best and most healing way to return to balance. Sexual health is an important piece of the puzzle that makes us whole and balanced. Birth can be a life-changing experience, but it is not meant to leave women and relationships scarred for life. The quicker we nurture ourselves back to harmony, the less time we will have to waste on being unhappy or uncomfortable. There is no time frame that works for every new mother, but each woman has to go through their own journey back to a "new normal" life after childbirth. Have patience, stay positive, and believe that sex can be enjoyable and pleasurable again one day very soon. What we believe is our truth, and the mind is a wonderful place to begin to manifest our dreams.