Why Does Sex Hurt After Having A Baby?

December 11, 2022 Dyspareunia Painful sex Pelvic Floor Dysfunction Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy Pelvic Pain Treatment Postpartum

Sleeping infant is happy. Caption asks why does sex hurt after giving birth? Physical therapy can help.

Why Does Sex Hurt After Having a Baby?

Moms, this one is for you if intimacy and penetrative sex hurt after having a baby. We are Purple Mountain Physical Therapy in Grand Rapids, Michigan and our licensed physical therapists specialize in treating pregnancy and postpartum conditions including painful sex, also called dyspareunia, vaginismus, pelvic girdle pain, lower back pain, pelvic pain, urinary incontiinence, diastasis recti abdominis and pelvic floor dysfunction. If you are experiencing new onset of pain with intimacy and wondering why sex suddenly hurts now, there can be a lot of reasons, which we detail below.

To learn more about why sex hurts for you after having your baby and our specialized physical therapy for painful sex or for complete postpartum recovery, call us at 616-516-4334 to get your questions answered from one of our knowledgable team members, or contact us here online and we will reach out to you!

Our pelvic floor physical therapists specialize in helping women who experience pain with intimacy and many times the reason why sex hurts after having a baby is because of musculoskeletal problems, such as pelvic floor muscle spasm, tailbone pain, SIJ pain, perineal scar tissue or C-section scar pain.

Your physical therapy begins with a detailed evaluation that will provide you with extensive insights and education for why sex hurts after having your baby. We specialize in helping you overcome all pelvic pain, including when sex hurts.

We offer in-person treatment and remote consultations for those who qualify. Research supports that women should be assessed by a physical therapist after giving birth, so you can be screened for problems, receive valuable education on the specifics of what your body needs to optimize your recovery and to learn corrective exercises to addres your pelvic floor dysfunction (PFD) and diastasis recti abdominis (DRA) (also called split abdominals) as well as elongated & stretched out abdominals. So many of our patients come to us with no idea why sex hurts after having a baby. One woman this week told us “I have told my doctor about this problem for 17 years and have been blown off! The only thing I have ever been told is to lose weight. That’s not an answer!” If you wonder if our physical therapists can help you understand why sex hurts after giving birth and provide treatment for your painful sex and postpartum recovery, the answer is yes. We help women everyday who have vaginismus, postpartum pelvic pain and painful sex. Because we specialize in this and provide private, 55 minute appointments with your doctor of physical therapy, patients tell us that the level of care they receive with us is far above anything they have ever had. Please call us at 616-516-4334 to get your questions answered from one of our knowledgable team members, or contact us here online and we will reach out to you!

“Pelvic floor dysfunction (PFD) and diastasis recti abdominis (DRA) are 2 examples of musculoskeletal disorders associated with pregnancy and childbirth that can have negative physical, social, and psychological consequences…. Evidence shows physical therapy is an effective, low-risk, therapeutic approach for PFD and DRA; however, physical therapists in the United States currently have a peripheral role in providing postpartum care. Lack of awareness, social stigma, and policy barriers prevent women from receiving physical therapist care.

-Claire J C Critchley, PT, DPT, Physical Therapy Is an Important Component of Postpartum Care in the Fourth Trimester, Physical Therapy, Volume 102, Issue 5, May 2022, pzac021,

If you are frustrated by having painful sex or vaginismus and no one has let you know why you are having pain with sex since giving birth and what you can do to help this problem, please know you are not alone! We treat postpartum women everyday whose sex is painful and who feel they’ve been dismissed by their medical provider. Our PTs will provide you with an examination that is different and more detailed so you can get some answers about why sex hurts after having your baby. If you are interested in getting insights into your condition so you can stop this pain with sex, call us at 616-516-4334 or reach out to us here and we will be in touch.

At what point postpartum should you reach out to a pelvic physical therapist?

We recommend that our pregnant patients touch base with us over the phone within two weeks of giving birth.

At that time, we provide a check-in and learn about how their birth went, whether they had a vaginal birth or cesarean and any complications, significant pain issues, bladder, bowel or anal issues. We answer all of their questions and advise on the next few weeks. If at two weeks you are feeling well, but tired, you don’t have pain, you can defecate, urinate and move without pain, then we advise you on basic corrective exercises for home to work on abdominal wall recovery, breathing, posture and pelvic floor rehabilitation. All of this can be done either remotely or in-person. To get your questions answered from one of our knowledgable team members, call 616-516-4334 or conctact us here online and we will reach out to you!

If, however, at one or two weeks postpartum you are having substantial problems with pain, peeing or pooping, we recommend coming to physical therapy straight away to begin treatment.

We commonly work with women who have experienced a traumatic birth injury (including OASIS injury), bladder injury, excess pain, tailbone pain, difficulty defecating, inability to sit, pain with trying to move from sit to stand or other more-than-expected pain problem (such as c-section surgical pain that is more than expected). If you cannot walk or easily move from sit to stand or in and out of bed, have terrible pain, trouble moving, difficulty peeing or pooping, we would want you to come to physical therapy for an in-person visit. Hopefully, if you are in the fist few weeks of your postpartum recovery and experiencing significant pain or problems functioning, you have reached out to your OB/Gyne or midwife and have been referred to physical therapy. Don’t be surprised, though, if they never mention physical therapy and simply tell you “good luck with that pain!” Unfortunately, we hear that happening all the time. Most of the women find us on their own, googling and frustrated by their pain or problems. If you are interested in learning more about our physical therapy for painful sex or for complete postpartum recovery, call us at 616-516-4334 to get your questions answered from one of our knowledgable team members, or contact us here online and we will reach out to you!

If you are struggling with painful sex and confused about why does sex hurt after having a baby, we can provide you answers.

Should sex hurt at six months after giving a baby? The answer is no, it should not hurt and if you are having pain with sex when six months postpartum we recommend you call us to receive a comprehensive pelvic physical therapy evaluation to determine if you have musculoskeletal issues contributing to your pain.

If sex hurts after giving birth and you are beyond 8 to 10 weeks postpartum and you are not already going to pelvic health PT, we recommend you get started. Common reasons why sex hurts after giving birth are that your pelvic floor muscles are tensed up, your pelvis is misaligned, your hip muscles are not allowing ease of penetration, lower back pain is influencing your pelvic floor, the tailbone suffered an injury or you have scarring either from tearing the perineum, an episiotomy or a cesarean surgery. Our licensed physical therapists specialize in giving you a compassionate and thorough examination of your entire body, not just your pelvic floor, to see what’s going on causing pain with sex or vaginismus. Our postpartum recovery program and painful sex treatment is private, thorough and will empower you to feel strong and painfree again. You can talk to fone of our knowledgable team members by calling us at 616-516-4334 or contact us here online and we will reach out to you!

37.5% of women experience painful sex six months after giving birth. Sex shouldn’t hurt! Physical therapy can help you and will give you answers to why sex hurts for you after giving birth.

Research has found that about 3 in 10 women can have pain with sex (dyspareunia) before pregnancy. To these women, I want you to know that physical therapy with our specialist PTs can help you. Research finds that at six months postpartum painful sex rates are higher, 37.5%. Fortunately, for 17% of women for whom sex hurts six months after giving birth, by 12 months their pain is back to where it was before having their baby. But, this means that 20.5% of women have persistent pain with sex at their baby’s birthday. Ladies, this is treatable! There is help! It is your pelvic floor muscles, low back, abdomen, scar tissue, hips, SIJ and tailbone that is causing this pain and our pelvic PTs specialize in this. Here is what the research finds regarding how many women find that sex hurts after having a baby:

“The proportion of women reporting dyspareunia (painful sex) at 6 months was significantly higher than those who experienced it pre-pregnancy (37.5% versus 29.3%, p < 0.001). Contrastingly, this was significantly lower than pre-pregnancy levels at 12 months postpartum (20.5% versus 29.3% p < 0.001).”

-O’Malley, D., Higgins, A., Begley, C. et al. Prevalence of and risk factors associated with sexual health issues in primiparous women at 6 and 12 months postpartum; a longitudinal prospective cohort study (the MAMMI study). BMC Pregnancy Childbirth 18, 196 (2018)

To determine why does sex hurt after having a baby, we will assess and treat you comprehensively. The causes and types of pain with sex vary. For example, some women have pain with deep penetration, while other women experience pain at the entrance (introitus or vaginal opening). Some women have pain with arousal, other women have pain the day after sex. Our PTs will help you understand why it hurts to have sex since you had your baby.

Where it hurts and when it hurts in the process of the intimacy can vary. Our PTs treat all varieties of pain that occurs with sex, including dyspareunia, vaginismus, tailbone pain, deep thrust pain, pain at the entrance/introitus, pain with orgasm, pain with arousal, burning pain, pinched nerve pain, bladder pain after having sex, feeling of having a bladder infection after sex but you don’t have an infection. This is not how it should be. It is not “normal” for sex to hurt after having a baby. Get proper treatment, it will help you feel better, recover your intimate relationship and ease your thoughts and worries about this problem. To get answers for why does it hurt to have sex after having your baby, you can begin the process by talking to one of our knowledgable team members at 616-516-4334 or conctact us here online and we will reach out to you!

If you are interested in learning more about our postpartum recovery program and whole-body treatment to help painful sex, diastasis recti abdominis, pelvic organ prolapse, pelvic floor dysfunction, core muscle recovery, back pain, tailbone pain, stress urinary incontinence or other issues, call us at 616-516-4334 or contact us here online and we will reach out to you.

To determine why sex hurts after having your baby, our licensed physical therapists check for many problems that contribute to pain with sex and are also fully treatable with the help of our postpartum physical therapists. Some of the things we evaluation & treat include:

Pelvic floor problems, including weakness, tension and stiffness
Low back pain, stiffness, movement or pinched nerves
Pubic bone misalignment, symphysis pubis dysfunction
Abdominal wall elongation or diastasis recti abdominis,
Postural changes from head to toe, as these can alter the load on the pelvic floor, rendering these muscles tight so penetrative sex hurts.
Shallow breathing & rib cage alterations (because this can tense up the pelvic floor and contribute to painful sex),
SIJ dysfunction
Hip problems, including labral tears, gluteal weakness, piriformis syndrome and obturator internus tension. The hips are part of the pelvis and can be a cause of pain with sex.
Tailbone misalignment, tension or stiffness
Scar tissue from perineal tearing, episiotomy or C-section surgery
Bladder dysfunction such as urinary incontinenence, overactive bladder, frequency and urgency, pain, waking up at night a lot to pee (nocturia) or difficulty starting your urine stream
Bowel dysfunction including hemorrhoids, constipation, painful defecation, incomplete emptying.
Pelvic organ prolapse and associated pressure, pain, pelvic floor dysfunction, myofascial tension
Myofascial restrictions head to toe.

We begin treatment at the very first appointment, which is a private, one-on-one 55 minute evaluation. You are welcome to bring your partner. Because we provide a whole body assessment of posture, core muscle strength, neck and back issues, your hips, glutes and thighs, we have a lot to cover in this first appointment. Depending on your symptoms and comfort level, this first appointment may include a gentle internal examination that assesses every pelvic floor muscle, your nerves and fascia. We also check for prolapse, pelvic floor strength, perineal scar tissue, tailbone mobility and more. Women tell us that our compassionate and trauma informed methods relieve their stress, fear and anxiety and give them answers and hope. You will leave your first visit with meaningful insights and education about your body, so you can begin to understand why it hurts to have sex since giving birth. If you are interested in learning more about our physical therapy for painful sex or for complete postpartum recovery, call us at 616-516-4334 to get your questions answered from one of our knowledgable team members, or contact us here online and we will reach out to you!

All of these issues can contribute to why sex hurts after giving a baby. The good news is that these are fully treatable with the skilled help of our licensed physical therapists.

We love to work with pregnant and postpartum women. It is a joy for us to see you get back to feeling great. We women know that the changes to our body during pregnancy are almost unbelievable to experience. For many of us, the pains, postural changes and pelvic floor and core muscle weakness that pregnancy caused persist after giving birth. Time passes and we find ourselves at 6 months postpartum experiencing pain with sex and wondering if it will just go away. We also have that quiet voice in our head that worries that sex will always hurt or be a diminished experience for the rest of our lives. Neither of these is true. Please, get the help of our specialist PTs who can give you a roadmap forward and answers that not only explain to you what is going on, but alleviate your pain and lift your fear and worry. You deserve this care. If you are interested in learning more about our postpartum recovery program and whole-body treatment to help painful sex, call us at 616-516-4334 or contact us here online and we will reach out to you. All of our team members with whom you will speak are knowledgable about our physical therapy and have talked with countless women just like you. changes our bodies so much and pushing a baby out of our pelvis does a number on our pelvic bones, hips, SIJ and pelvic floor muscles and tissues.

Peace,

Dr. Maureen O’Keefe, DPT founder of Purple Mountain Physical Therapy and specialist pregnancy and postpartum physical therapist. We are located in Grand Rapids, Michigan and offer in-person care or remote consultations for those who qualify. All of our PTs are specialists in the field of pelvic health, pelvic pain, TMJ disorders, neck and back pain. We treat adults and children.

You may be alone and wondering why does sex hurt for your after having your baby? There are so many things that can help you, reach out to us today to speak with one of our knowledgable team members who can answer your questions about cost, availability and what to expect.

You may be interested in reading these other articles we’ve written about the treatment we offer:

Physical Therapy Resolves Vaginismus and Dyspareunia

Are you looking for Painful Sex Treatment in Grand Rapids?

Exercise in Pregnancy: A Physical Therapists Perspective

Tips to Fix Incontinence Naturally

Does Physical Therapy Help Endometriosis?

Vulvar Pain and Pelvic Floor Dysfunction go together.

References for why does sex hurt after having a baby:

Alligood-Percoco NR, Kjerulff KH, Repke JT. Risk Factors for Dyspareunia After First Childbirth. Obstet Gynecol. 2016 Sep;128(3):512-518. doi: 10.1097/AOG.0000000000001590. PMID: 27500349; PMCID: PMC4993626.

Claire J C Critchley, PT, DPT, Physical Therapy Is an Important Component of Postpartum Care in the Fourth Trimester, Physical Therapy, Volume 102, Issue 5, May 202.

O’Malley, D., Higgins, A., Begley, C. et al. Prevalence of and risk factors associated with sexual health issues in primiparous women at 6 and 12 months postpartum; a longitudinal prospective cohort study (the MAMMI study). BMC Pregnancy Childbirth 18, 196 (2018)

Simonds, Adrienne H. PT, PhD¹; Abraham, Karen PT, PhD²; Spitznagle, Theresa PT, DPT, WCS³. Clinical Practice Guidelines for Pelvic Girdle Pain in the Postpartum Population. Journal of Women’s Health Physical Therapy: January/March 2022 – Volume 46 – Issue 1 – p E1-E38

Stuge, Britt MSc, PT^*; Lærum, Even PhD^†; Kirkesola, Gitle PT^‡; Vøllestad, Nina PhD^*. The Efficacy of a Treatment Program Focusing on Specific Stabilizing Exercises for Pelvic Girdle Pain After Pregnancy: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Spine: February 15, 2004 – Volume 29 – Issue 4 – p 351-359

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