Whether it's obeying the speed limit or returning your library books on time, you pride yourself on being someone who always follows the rules. But when you learn you would have to wait six weeks after delivery to have sex, you may give your doctor serious side eye. If you had a healthy sex life before childbirth, those six week wait may seem like an eternity. Although you'll do your best to wait, you may be tempted to go a little rogue. This makes you wonder, is it normal to want to have sex without waiting the six weeks postpartum?
Believe it or not, your doctor isn't just trying to torment you by making you wait until after your six-week postpartum checkup to resume intercourse. Until you've allowed your uterus and cervix time to heal, bacteria may find it's way into your vagina, leaving you susceptible to infection, according to Baby Center. If you incurred any lacerations or had an episiotomy, having sex before you've allowed the appropriate amount of healing time can interfere with your healing and cause you to have another procedure to repair the damage, Baby Center added.
But waiting may not be that difficult. According to Parents, that cocktail of hormones that has been swirling around inside of you won't return to normal until you begin to menstruate again — between four to 12 weeks after your delivery. And many women lack the desire to hit the sheets in the immediate weeks after delivery because the demands of being a new mommy leave them exhausted, Parents added.
Though some new moms may not want to have anything to do with sex in the immediate weeks postpartum, some find that motherhood makes them feel all kinds of sexy. As Fit Pregnancy mentioned, some women find that they enjoy sex more after giving birth, as they feel more comfortable with their bodies, are more sensitive to stimulation, and have more intense orgasms.
Even though intercourse may be off the table, you don't have to forgo sex completely while you heal. According to Pregnancy magazine, manual stimulation and sex toys are fair game, as long as you avoid penetration. And who knows? Having to be a little more creative might add some spice to your relationship and make waiting a whole lot easier.
